Into a New World
by mad-hatter-0495
Summary: When I found the injured, weird looking animal that night, I had no clue what it was going to turn into the next morning. Out of all the regrets I have in my life, this one HAS to take the cake. Warning: Mild swearing, and VERRRYYY slow romance.
1. Chapter 1

BLEACH – Into a New World

OK GUYS!

So. I have to clarify some things. Wait, it might spoil the story...I'll do it at the end...

Ok. So this is a GrimmjowXOC pairing, and even though I've put it under romance, it doesn't start until later. I'm trying to make this really good, so it might take a while for each chapter to come out, and I don't know when or how it's going to end.

And also, I don't known anything/anyone but Nagi. This is Tite Kubo's story.

Now...BEGIN!

P.S Originally, I had Nagi as a third year student, but I realized that it screwed up the timeline, so I changed it to first year (same as Kurosaki/Orihime/others).

* * *

Chapter 1: What Have I Done?

Ignoring the spirit trailing behind me, I yawned tiredly as I trudged down the dark street, on my way home from tutor. I was exhausted, and I really needed to sleep.

"Gah!" I had almost tripped over a plushie that was lying randomly in the street. Except, the plushie was very big, and seemed to be bleeding. _But plushies don't bleed._ I thought. _But it can't be an animal either. I mean, what kind of animal looks like that?_ It was white, but had no hair. It's paws and ears were black, and it had lines all over its body. _Could it be…a spirit? _I shook my head. It didn't look like any spirit I'd ever seen. _But maybe…let's just call it a spirit. _Edging closer, I looked at its face. Suddenly, its eyes opened and it growled. Shocked, I scurried backwards. It was alive! But it seemed dangerous. _Maybe it would be better to just leave it._ Turning, I took a couple of steps before stopping and guiltily looking back at the motionless 'animal'. Sighing, I plodded back. It would've been too inhumane just to leave it there.

* * *

"Aughh…" I groaned as I dumped it on the floor of my room. Rolling my shoulders, I winced. It was _heavy_. Quickly rummaging in the drawers, I found the first aid kit. Then, I gathered some towels and a bucket of hot water to wash off the blood with. Suddenly I noticed that it had a gaping hole in its torso. I frowned. Things didn't look good for this strange looking spirit. Then I reconsidered. _Is it even possible for a spirit to die again?_ I wondered. Unsure if a spirit even needed bandages, I hesitated for a moment, but decided to use them anyway, just so that I wouldn't have to see the blood anymore. "Urk…" I muttered as I tried not to look at the gashes or the hole. I was really bad with blood, but somehow, I managed to bandage it up properly. Sighing, I sat there staring at the spirit, wondering what I was going to do with it. I didn't know the species, I had no idea of its temperament and I had no clue what I was going to do when it woke up. Worn-out, I changed into my pajamas, and snuggled down under my covers. _Thank god it's Saturday tomorrow._ I thought drowsily before falling asleep.

* * *

"Oi girl…girl…" I frowned, puzzled. There was a male voice calling me, but who? Groggily, I opened my eyes to find myself staring into a pair of light blue ones. Sitting bolt upright, I looked cautiously at the 'animal' spirit that was standing beside my bed. I sighed with relief, forgetting about the voice. It seemed fine. Just then, it opened its mouth. "Oi." My jaw dropped. The voice had come from the 'animal'.

"WAAAHHHHHH!" I shrieked as I leapt out of bed, towards the door. Tripping halfway, I fell forward and smacked my head against the doorknob. "Ow! Dammit!" Turning to face the 'animal' as he approached, I pressed my back to the door. Shoving his face in front of mine, he growled.

"Don't ignore me when I talk to you, girl." _Crap. _He seemed to be angry.

"Uh, yes, sir." I answered, intimidated.

"Good." He sat down on its haunches. "Now tell me, where the hell is this and who the hell are you?"

"Um, this is my room, in my apartment, in Karakura town, in Japan. I'm Kawada Nagi, a first year high school student at Karakura High School." I gulped, hoping my explanation was satisfactory.

"Hm. Karakura town huh?" he repeated slowly, deep in thought. Gathering my courage, I timidly cleared my throat.

"Uh, if I may ask, what are you?" his eyes focused on my face again.

"My name is Grimmjow Jaegerjaquez. Sexta."

"Oh, I see." I nodded my head vaguely. He stared at me.

"No you don't. What's my name?" I swallowed nervously.

"Uh, Sexta?"

"No, that's my rank."

"Um, j-jacks?" he was irritated now.

"You human, I should kill you right now." He growled. I shut my eyes tightly. _I KNEW I shouldn't have picked it up_. But the blow never came. Opening my eyes slightly, I realized he had moved to the window. "But since I owe you for helping me out, I'll let you live for now. Just call me Grimmjow." Breathing a sigh of relief, I relaxed slightly. Peeking at it curiously, I wondered if it was safe to ask another question. Standing up slowly, I put my hand on the doorknob behind me, ready to run if I had to.

" Um, how is it that you can talk?" I cautiously asked, ready to sprint.

"What's wrong with me talkin', huh?" he snapped. I flinched, turning the doorknob slightly.

"Nothing, but…um, well, it's just that, you, uh, you speak Japanese very well…" I mumbled.

"Hmph. Of course. I'm an Arrancar, the most intelligent, powerful and humanoid form of the Menos." Seeing my blank expression, he sighed.

"I don't know why I even bother." He muttered to himself. "No more questions!" he snapped after seeing my expectant face. _Damn. _I muttered silently to myself. _I wanted to know what a Menos was._

* * *

Although I found him menacing at first, he had a child-like curiosity that made him less intimidating. One of the first things he found was toothpaste.

"Hey, girl, what's this?" he asked pawing at the tube of toothpaste that he bought into my room.

"It's toothpaste. You can't eat it." I murmured absentmindedly as I focused on my homework. Hearing that, he grew annoyed.

"Hah? I can't eat this? What the hell do you mean 'you can't eat this?' I'll eat whatever the hell I want!" he growled and with that, he ripped open the tube of toothpaste and squirted it into his mouth, only to spit it out a second later. "Shit! What the hell is this? It's gross!" he wiped his paw across his mouth.

"Because it's not for eating." I sighed patiently.

"Well then you should've told me earlier!" he snapped, and sulking, he curled into a ball.

"I'm pretty sure I did." I muttered under my breath. Pinching the bridge of my nose, I leaned back in my chair. Dealing with Grimmjow was just too tiring. Even though he was wounded, he was restless and snappy. Slumping down further in my chair, I sighed. I was stuck with a violent, rude 'animal', which not only talked, but talked nonsense. I had to figure out what to do with him soon, it was impossible for him to stay. _I should never have picked him up. _I groaned to myself for the fifteenth time that day. Looking up at the ceiling, I shook my fist. _Why, God? Why me? _I was just a normal, slightly lazy, mild girl who just _happened _to be able to see spirits. Yawning, I decided that he would just have to wait until tomorrow. I needed my sleep.

* * *

"Oi, girl…girl…" It was Grimmjow's voice. Groggily, I opened my eyes to find myself staring into a pair of light blue ones. But the animal face that I was expecting wasn't there. Instead, it was a human one, with a piece of bone covering his right cheek and a shock of electric blue hair. Fleetingly I wondered how anyone could have blue hair before my jaw dropped. How the HELL did this weirdo get in my room?

"WAAAHHHHHH!" I shrieked as I leapt out of bed, towards the door. Tripping halfway, I fell forward and smacked my head against the doorknob. "Ow! Dammit!" It was almost a replay of the previous morning. The rather good-looking blue haired man sat there looking exasperated.

"Oi, oi, why is it that your reaction is the same every morning?" he complained with Grimmjow's voice.

"You-you…what did you do with Grimmjow? DID YOU EAT HIM?" I shrieked hysterically.

"I AM Grimmjow, you idiot!" he yelled, irritated.

"You can't trick me!" I yelled back "Grimmjow's an animal type thing!" lunging forward, he grabbed my collar and shoved his face close to mine.

"I. AM. GRIMMJOW. DAMMIT!" he snarled.

"Uh, ok." I answered unwillingly, leaning back as far as I could. The personality certainly matched. Glancing down, I caught sigh of the gaping hole in his stomach. I felt faint. "Um…" I cleared my throat "just to let you know…you, ah, you have a h-hole in your stomach." I swallowed. I felt like I was going to be sick.

"So?" he raised his eyebrows as he released me "you were fine with it when I was in Adjuchas form." I gaped.

"Eh? You're really Grimmjow? But, that would mean that you're a spirit, and spirits have chains here but no holes there." I pointed to his chest, then to his stomach. He rolled his eyes.

"I told you, I'm an Arrancar." The word meant nothing to me, but I guessed he was saying he was different from normal spirits.

"But-but, how did you change into…" I gestured at his muscular body "…this form?"

"I had to revert back to my Adjuchas form so I could escape from Hueco Mundo without being detected." His expression darkened "That damn Nnoitra, lookin' down on me like that, almost makes me hope that he got bashed by that Kurosaki kid. " He muttered.

"Kurosaki?" I asked, eyes wide "Kurosaki Ichigo?" He glanced at me.

"You know him?"

"There's a boy called Kurosaki Ichigo at my school." Reconsidering, I shook my head. "They're probably not the same person though. I mean, he stands out with his orange hair, and he has a weird kimono cosplay fetish, but I don't think-"

"That's the one." Grimmjow cut me off. "He's the one who almost defeated me."

"Defeated?" I gave him a strange look. _Just what is he on about?_ There was so much I didn't understand, so many questions that I wanted to ask, I didn't even know where to start. But it wasn't like Grimmjow was going to answer them. His explanations just made me more confused. _Maybe Kurosaki? _I wondered, since it seemed like Grimmjow knew him. Suddenly I noticed the time.

"Crap! I'm going to be late!" I sprinted to the bathroom and was out within minutes. Skipping breakfast, I rushed out of the door, slowing only to yell to Grimmjow not to break anything while I was away.

* * *

"Made it…" I puffed as I entered the bakery.

"Morning Nagi!" it was Orihime, smiling and waving at me from behind the counter.

"Morning." I smiled back. It sure was nice to be able to understand what other people were saying. Orihime was another student from my school, who worked at the bakery with me. When I started the job a year ago, she was the one who helped me out and explained everything to me. After that, we became good friends. Suddenly, her smile disappeared and her eyes grew wide. Confused, I glanced at myself. _I'm not in my pajamas am I?_ I wondered.

"Woman." Startled, I spun around to see a blue haired man staring at Orihime.

"Grimmjow!" I cried appalled. He had followed me all the way to my part time job! Suddenly realizing, I clamped my hands over my mouth. For a second, I had forgotten that Orihime was there. _Now she's going to think I'm insane._ I thought dismally. Hesitantly glancing at her, I saw her staring at me in shock. Quickly I fixed my eyes on the floor again, ears burning. _I knew it. _

"Nagi, you know Grimmjow?" My head shot up.

"You can see him? You know him?" I spluttered, astonished.

"Yes." She had an uncharacteristically grim, and slightly scared look on her face. "But, I'll tell you the rest later. There's somewhere I need to take you after our shift."

* * *

Ok, so. I don't think it's possible for a Arrancar to turn back into it's Adjuchas form when it wants, but i did my research and it didn't say they couldn't either, so...yeah...

Also, although this is in english, the actual setting is in Japan, so it's not a typo when Nagi says "you speak Japanese well."

Lastly, in the Japan, they usually say the surename first, then the first name, but they switch it around for the english version. I chose to stick with the Japanese version so yeah...

I hope you guys enjoyed the first chapter~~


	2. Chapter 2

BLEACH – Into a New World

Hey guys~~

So. I did research, but alas, I couldn't find anything about the material items they have in Hueco Mundo. I assume they have furniture, and I have heard that Aizen served tea (I don't remember), but otherwise, i have no clue about anything else, like food, animals, etc, so some of the things I write might seem incorrect, but I honestly couldn't find any info so forgive me...

Anyway, all this except for Nagi is owned by Tite Kubo, not me.

* * *

Chapter 2: To Hate That Man

"So, this is where you wanted to take me? A convenience store?" I asked, looking skeptically at the shifty building. "Urahara Shop." I read aloud. _Weird name. _I thought. Next to me, Grimmjow frowned.

"This reistau…" he murmured. Looking at Orihime, he narrowed his eyes. "You want me to meet with a damn _Shinigami_?" a muscle in his jaw twitched. I frowned.

_Shinigami? Isn't that a…Death God?_ My pondering was interrupted by a whimper from Orihime. Whipping my head up, I realized that Grimmjow had grabbed her collar and pulled her up so that only her toes were touching the ground. Something in my head snapped as I felt my vision go red.

*SLAP* Grimmjow reeled back; hand on his cheek, eyes wide with surprise. "You bastard." I growled, "You can't just grab people like that, damn you." Livid, I backhanded him. "Ow, dammit!" I had forgotten about the stupid piece of bone he had on his face. Clutching my injured hand, I glared defiantly up at him, my normal mild personality completely replaced.

"Well, what a surprise." Blinking, I looked at the shop to see a shady looking man wearing clogs and a bucket hat standing in the doorway of the shop.

"Mr. Urahara!" Orihime sounded relieved. Snapping shut his fan; he motioned for us to follow him.

"Come, we'll talk inside."

* * *

"Hmmm…I see." The man named Urahara Kisuke murmured as tapped his fan against his chin. "You seem to be in quite a predicament young lady." He said, looking at me. Nodding furiously, I took a sip of my green tea. My throat was dry after having to explain everything. I heard Grimmjow snort, but ignored him.

"Um," I cleared my throat uncertainly "I have some questions too." I said. Urahara raised his eyebrow.

"About?"

"Everything. Arrancars, Shinigami, Hueco Mundo…Just…Everything."

"Hmmm…" he crossed his arms. "I suppose I should tell you shouldn't I?" he mused.

"Well, to start with…"

* * *

Almost an hour later, we were finally done. But my whole world had been flipped upside down. Nothing was going to be the same again. I stared blankly at my half empty cup of green tea, mind swirling, trying to make sense of everything Mr. Urahara had just told me.

"Ahem." I looked up.

"Currently, Grimmjow is staying at your apartment am I correct?" I nodded, eyes still slightly glazed. He turned to Grimmjow. "Why don't you stay here instead, while I try to find a gigai for you."

"What?" he snarled "You want me to stay here, where you can keep and eye on me and keep me under control?" he clenched his jaw. "Forget it!" I silently made a face. It didn't look like I was going to be able to get rid of him easily.

"Ok, ok, I got it. You can continue to stay at Nagi's apartment." Urahara held up his hand in surrender, smiling, unconcerned with my horrified expression. "But you still need a gigai. Come back tomorrow, and I might have one ready." I heaved a deep sigh as I let my head hang. This was the worst.

* * *

I kept my face neutral as I walked back home with Grimmjow strolling casually beside me. Now that I had cooled down a bit, I was mentally beating myself up for slapping him. What was I thinking slapping such a violent man? And he was going to live with me too! _I'm going to die any minute, any day now._

"Sooo…" he casually tucked his hands in the pockets of his Hakama. "You're pretty feisty huh, girl?" He smirked. Gawking at him, I realized that rather than being angry, he was amused. Ignoring him, I walked faster. "You're gonna be waayyy more fun than that woman." Stopping abruptly, I whirled around to glare up at him. My tranquil state of mind that I had finally regained had just been shattered again. He was quite a bit taller than me; the top of my head only came up to his chest, but at that moment, I was just too angry to be intimidated by his muscles or height.

"Just shut up!" I snapped "and don't call her 'woman' either, she has a name you asshole!" I was being uncharacteristically vulgar, but the situation called for it. Raising an eyebrow, he smirked lazily at me. Shaking my head in disgust, I stormed off. Talking to him was just a waste of time.

* * *

The next morning, I was up before my alarm was off. Quietly getting dressed, I padded into the bathroom to wash my face and brush my blue-black hair that just reached just past my shoulders. Looking at myself in the mirror, I noticed new dark circles under my light brown-almost golden eyes. I sighed. I hadn't been able to sleep properly knowing there was a random, violate man in the house. Picking up my bag, I tiptoed past a sleeping Grimmjow, lying on the couch where he had been exiled to the previous day. I initially thought that he would rage again, but he was surprisingly cooperative. Suddenly, a large warm hand closed around my wrist.

"Where are you going?" I looked over my shoulder at Grimmjow who had propped himself up on one elbow.

"School." I answered.

"School? That's where Kurosaki is right?" he got up from the couch in one swift, fluid movement. "I'm comin' with you." I sighed.

"No you're not. You're just going to try and fight him, and the whole school will be destroyed." I told him mildly, opening the door. "If you want to come so desperately, get your gigai first." _With luck, Mr. Urahara won't have the gigai ready yet, and I'll be at school before he can find me and follow me._ Grimmjow smirked; he was doing that a lot recently.

"Done." When I looked back, he was already gone.

* * *

Puffing a little, I dropped my bag onto my desk. I had sprinted to school in record speed, fearing that Grimmjow might've somehow secretly followed me. "Nagi!" Turning around, I spotted Orihime waving madly to me from the doorway of my classroom, with Kurosaki behind her, yawning loudly.

"Morning." I walked over, scooting past desks and chairs.

"Ok." Orihime clapped her hands together happily. "Introductions! Kurosaki, this is Nagi, she's the one who Grimmjow's staying with. Nagi, this is Kurosaki, the Shinigami." Awkwardly, I nodded at him.

"Hi." He gave a small nod in return.

"Hey." There was a pause.

"So." I coughed self-consciously, "I hear you and Grimmjow don't get along too well." He pulled a face.

"Yeah, well, the last time we saw each other, we tried to kill each other."

"Oh." I squirmed uncomfortably. Sensing my discomfort, Orihime butted in.

"Alright! So now that introductions are over, we have to be going back to class!" Gently pushing Kurosaki along, she paused to wave back at me. "Come join us on the rooftop for lunch ok?"

"Alright!" I called back waving. All my friends were busy today anyway.

* * *

Humming quietly, I grabbed my lunchbox and was just about to head to the rooftop when I noticed a commotion at the window. There were up to fifteen girls pressed against the glass, squealing and sighing. Curious, I sidled closer. "What's going on?" I asked one of them.

"Omygosh!" she squealed dramatically. "There's like, a totally hot guy at the school gates!" peering between the excited girls, I saw a flash of blue hair. I groaned. _This can't be happening. _Face palming, I stalked out of the classroom, down the stairs and into the courtyard.

"Grimmjow!" I hissed when I got into range. "What are you doing here?" shrugging, he lazily crossed his arms and leaned against the brick wall.

"Well, you said that if I wanted to come, I had to get my gigai." He motioned at his body, clad in a black singlet and blue jeans, showing off his muscled chest and arms. Unable to come up with a rebuttal for that argument, I scowled at the ground.

"How did he find me anyway? Did Mr. Urahara tell him?" I quietly muttered to myself, but his keen ears picked it up.

"As if I would ask for help from that shitty Shinigami!" he snapped, offended. "I just followed your reiatsu. Yours is pretty strong for a human so it was a piece of cake." Sighing, I hung my head. What was I supposed to do now? Suddenly I felt him tense up.

"Grimmjow." Surprised, I spun around to see Kurosaki and Orihime standing with a small black haired girl, a big tanned foreigner and a boy wearing glasses, who I recognized as Kuchiki Rukia, Yasutora Sado, and Ishida Uryuu.

"Yo, Kurosaki." His tone was nonchalant, but the tension was rolling off his body in waves. "Relax, I ain't here to fight today, though I wish I could." He grinned cockily. "Just wanted to let you know that I ain't dead yet, and that I'll be sure to return the favor for the beating you gave me a while back." I rolled my eyes. Male ego. It was so stupid. "Come on girl, we're leaving." Stunned, I gaped at his retreating back. Did he _really _expect me to follow him like a dog and just forget about class?

"Nagi." It was Orihime. "I think you should go with him." My jaw hit the ground. Seeing my flabbergasted expression, she quickly explained. "It's just that he doesn't know this world well yet, and he could get into trouble if you're not with him." I sighed. It sucked, but she was right. Taking a glance at Grimmjow, I realized that he was already only a speck in the distance.

"Orihime, can you give an excuse for me and get my bag? I don't have time to go back up." I was already beginning to jog towards Grimmjow.

"Sure!" she called back giving me a small wave. Accelerating, I caught up to him.

"Wait!" I gasped grabbing his arm. Looking down at me, panting and clutching his arm, his face broke out into a smug grin. Straightening up, I pointed in the other direction.

"You're going the wrong way."

* * *

I sighed. Male ego. It was just the most incomprehensible thing ever. On the way home from school, and even after we got home, he was snappy and rude. All because I told him he was going the wrong way. "And I even skipped school for him." I muttered sullenly furiously working away at my math homework. He was so ungrateful. "Ah, dammit." I needed a calculator. Rummaging around my cluttered desk, I suddenly froze. Sitting on the calculator I searched so hard for, was a spider the size of the nail on my pinky. For most people, spiders aren't a big deal. Especially if it's the size of the nail on their pinky, but ever since I was small, I'd had an irrational fear of them. Gulping, I wondered if Grimmjow would help me, but then I shook my head. I had my pride. Shuddering, I grabbed a handful of tissues. Slowly, slowly, I moved my hand so that it was directly on top of the spider.

This was it. I took a deep breath. I was definitely going to kill it this time.

But then it jumped.

Jerking backwards, I small scream erupted from my lips before I could help myself. There was just NO WAY I could kill a jumping spider. Quaking, I pressed myself against the opposite wall, all the while keeping an eye on the horrendous thing.

"What happened?" Grimmjow had stuck his head into my room, staring at me curiously. My pride crumbled.

"S-spider…" I whimpered, pointing at my table.

"Spider?" he cocked his head to one side. "What's that? We don't have those in Hueco Mundo." Out of the corner of my eye, I saw it jump again.

"There! There! The thing that just jumped!" Interested, he ambled to my table.

"You mean this?" he picked it up with his fingers. Whimpering, I nodded. He stared at me with disbelief before bursting into laughter.

"Ahahaha! Who would've thought you would be scared of such a small thing!" he chucked, wiping away tears of mirth from the corners of his eyes. Suddenly, a sly grin stole over his sharp features. I cringed and shrunk into myself as he took a step towards me.

"Stop. Don't come closer!" Grinning, he took another step.

"No! Stop it!" He was too close.

"Stop it! Please! Go away!" By this time, he was right in front of me, spider held lightly between his thumb and forefinger.

"No…Please…please…" I sobbed, curling into a small ball with my hands over my head. He stood there for a moment more before moving back, sighing with satisfaction.

"I was right." He sounded pleased "You ARE more fun." I didn't move from my position until I heard my door click shut and his footsteps moving away. Then I lifted my head to glare at the closed door, eyes shining with unshed tears. I HATED that man.


	3. Chapter 3

BLEACH – Into a New World

HEYYYY~~

Alright, so in order not to spoil the chapter, I'll do the explanations and stuff at the end.

Also, I'm beginning to wonder if I put this under the wrong genre, because right now, it's under humor, but it gets more dramatic in the next chapter. So, I apologize to those who don't like drama...

Disclaimer: All this(except for Nagi) is owned by Tite Kubo~~

* * *

Chapter 3: Do you think I'm attractive?

"I hate this." I groaned as I slumped over the table in Mr. Urahara's shop. "Hate it, hate it, hate it, hate it." I muttered as I bumped my head repeatedly on the wooden surface. This was the most annoyed, angry, fed up and helpless I had ever felt in my entire life.

"Now, now." Mr. Urahara said lazily, snapping open his fan. "You'll get brain damage if you keep doing that." Sighing, I rested my head on the table as Orihime patted my back sympathetically.

"What should I do?" I moaned.

"Nothing." Mr. Urahara took a sip of his tea. "I'm sure it'll only get better." I stared at him, flabbergasted. Seeing my expression he shrugged. "This is considered good behavior for him. You should count yourself lucky."

"Right." I drummed my fingers on the hard surface. "I'm just SO lucky that he thinks I'm fun to bully. SO lucky that I don't want to go home anymore. SO lucky." My sarcastic side was coming out. Pinching the bridge of my nose, I exhaled, calming down. That wasn't fair of me. It wasn't his fault that Grimmjow was such a sadist. It wasn't right for me to snap at him. "Sorry." I murmured, ashamed. He chuckled.

"No, it's fine. I know how frustrated you are, and I wish I could do something to help, but Grimmjow isn't someone who's easily controlled. I'm sorry, but you'll have to endure it for a bit longer." He smiled regretfully at me. I nodded sadly and sighed.

"Well," Orihime piped up "at least he got rid of the spider for you right? And he didn't end up throwing it at you or anything so that's good." She beamed optimistically at me. Smiling back, I felt my spirits lift. She was right. I should be more optimistic. Maybe then, he wouldn't seem like such a bad person.

* * *

"What is that?" I stared at the long object he was swinging around.

"My katana. I found it on the streets this mornin' when I went to get my gigai." He swung it to the side, just barley missing the couch.

"Ok, but don't swing it around in here!" I cried anxiously as I frantically moved objects and furniture out of the blades reach.

"Hmph. Don't tell me what I can do and what I can't. I'll do what I like." He swung it again, taking off the top of a chair.

"Alright, fine." I took a deep breath. "Could you PLEASE not use that in here." Smirking, he finally sheathed it.

"So, what are we gonna do now?" he asked, lounging on the couch with the grace of a cat. "This place is so boring. There's no one to kill." Shivering a little at the last sentence, I looked at him with determination. I was going to teach him about my world.

"We're going shopping."

* * *

"What's this?" he asked holding up a carton of milk.

"It's milk. Stuff you drink." I replied absently, trying to decide between orange juice and apple juice. Hearing a ripping sound, I whipped my head around to find that Grimmjow had ripped open the carton and was chugging down the milk. "Grimmjow!" I cried with despair.

"Hey!" The store manager shouted storming towards us, face red with fury.

"I'm sorry! I'm so sorry!" I apologized over and over again, face red with shame. "He's a foreigner so he doesn't really understand how things work here. I'm so, very sorry. I'll pay for that. I'm so sorry." Hurriedly, I handed the money to the angry manager and dragged Grimmjow out of the shop, still holding the half empty carton. "Listen," I kept my voice level, even though I felt like whupping him over the head. "In this world, you have to pay before you can open and eat stuff like that." He shrugged nonchalantly.

"Whatever. But this stuff is pretty good. You should 'pay', as you said." I gritted my teeth. My patience was wearing thin. Closing my eyes, I took a couple of deep breaths.

"Alright." I opened my eyes. "I'll buy you the milk, but in return, please don't touch anything in the shops. Please." He smirked.

"Fine by me. As long as I get that 'milk' stuff." Sighing I rubbed my forehead.

"We'll get it last, otherwise it might go bad by the time we get home."

"Go bad?"

"Become disgusting." I glanced at him. He was wearing the singlet and jeans again. "Now we have to go buy clothes for you."

* * *

The instant we stepped into the shop, all the shop assistants stared at us with awe, or rather, they stared at Grimmjow with awe. Even I had to admit, with his striking features, and toned body, he was quite attractive. Almost immediately, the shop became a battlefield. The assistants pushed and shoved each other as they fought their way towards us, struggling for the right to serve him. Finally, the winner was determined. It was a tall slender girl whose nametag read "Sae". "How can I help you?" She beamed while brushing a stray hair away from her face.

"Uh, well…" I was still dazed from the brawl I just witnessed, "He needs some clothes."

"Of course!" she chirped. "Right this way please!" Slowly coming out of my stupor, I heard little tidbits of the shop assistants conversations as we walked past.

"Foreigner…so handsome…those muscles…eyes…who's she?…girlfriend?…" I rolled my eyes inwardly. _I would rather die._ We stopped at the men's section. The shop assistant turned to us.

"So what type of clothing are you looking for? Casual? Formal? Suits?" she eyed his body, admiring the contours of his muscles.

"Just casual clothing please. Preferably cheaper items." I turned to Grimmjow as she left to find what I requested, "In places like these, you can try on clothes that you like, but please don't rip them."

"Yeah, yeah, whatever." He was staring curiously at a group of shop assistants who blushed and giggled when they met his gaze. Sighing, I wondered if he even heard me.

"Please try these on." Sae was back with a bundle of shirts and pants. Dropping the heavy bundle into my arms, she took Grimmjow by the elbow. "The changing rooms are this way." Lagging behind, I carefully scooted past racks of clothing and people. _Isn't this supposed to be the shop assistants job? _I wondered. _Whatever._ I shrugged. _It's nothing big anyway._

"Let's try this first!" Sae grabbed a couple of items from the bundle and shoved it towards Grimmjow. Seeming a bit dazed, he wandered into an empty stall and shut the door. "So," she turned to me, "is he your boyfriend?"

"B-boyfriend?" I spluttered "No! No, it's nothing like that." She laughed and patted my cheek.

"I thought so! I don't really mean to sound rude or anything, but you two just don't suit each other."

"Hmmm." I murmured.

"You know," she continued, "I think his type is more of a stylish girl, someone mature."

"Hmmm."

"A tall girl would be nice, since he's tall."

"Hmmm."

"And she has to be slender and beautiful."

"Hmmm." _She's describing herself isn't she?_ I thought, mildly amused. Just then, the door to Grimmjow's change room flew open.

"Dammit, girl! Why are there so many of these?" he scowled at the undone buttons on his shirt, unintentionally showing off his well-built chest and six-pack. Glancing behind me I realized that two women had fainted while the rest looked like they were close to hitting the ground.

"Oh! Here, let me help you!" Sae was there in a flash. I raised an eyebrow. _I think standing that close to him makes it HARDER to do buttons._ But I made no comment. While she took her time doing the buttons, I checked the prices of the rest of the clothes in the pile. Sae had done her job well. They were all affordable for a student like me. But I was still going to get Mr. Urahara to reimburse me.

"Excuse me," I called to her "I'll take all of these please." I pointed at the outfit Grimmjow wore "That too."

"Oh, of course! The checkout is this way." Grabbing Grimmjow, she left me to carry the clothes again.

* * *

"Thank you! Please come again!" the shop assistants chimed as we exited the shop. Grimmjow glanced back, contemplating.

"They make good slaves." He remarked.

"Hmmm." I murmured, not really listening. Now, I had to buy groceries and the milk.

"But why did they keep turning red and giggle when I looked at them?" he frowned "It was annoying, like they were talking about me behind my back."

"Hmmm, well that's because they think you're attractive." I murmured distracted. I was running out of rice at home.

"Really?"

"Yes."

"What about you?"

"Hm?" I looked up into his smirking face.

"Do you think I'm attractive?"

_Uh-oh._ I was stuck between a rock and a hard place. If I admitted that he was attractive, I would be fueling his ego, which was the LAST thing I wanted to happen, but if I denied it…it was obviously a lie, and I knew he would be able to tell. I sighed.

"Yeah." I cringed as his grin grew wider.

"Ha!" he laughed "This place isn't as bad as I thought." I rolled my eyes. _Endure, endure, endure. _I repeated over and over in my head. _Think of all the positives. Be optimistic_. I told myself. It was hard.

"What are they doin'?" A couple had caught Grimmjows attention. They were walking along, the mans arm hooked over his girlfriends shoulders.

"They're walking." I deadpanned. He scowled at my sarcasm.

"I know THAT, but why're they walkin' like that? It just makes walkin' harder." I sighed.

"They're a couple, which means the man loves the woman and the woman loves the man and because they want to be close all the time, they walk like that even though it's inconvenient."

"Love? Are you kiddin' me?" he rolled his eyes. "Love is stupid. It just makes you do stupid things, like walkin' like that." He jerked his thumb in the direction of the couple.

"Well, to humans, it's not stupid. In fact, a lot of people really want someone to love and to have that person love them back."

"Hmm…" Grimmjow looked me thoughtfully. "You sure know a lot about that kind of stuff. You got someone like that or what?" I glared at him, unable to help myself.

"I don't." I snapped, annoyed "My friends tell me about this kind of stuff."

"Really now?" There was a glint in his eyes, which I didn't like the look of. "Then, lets give it a shot too." And with that, he slung his arm over my shoulder.

"Stop that!" Grouchily, I slapped his arm away, but I was blushing. Keeping my head down, I quickly walked away, but not before hearing him chuckle.

"Heh, feisty."

* * *

Alright so, for this chapter, I thought since Grimmjow's resurrection is the Pantera...

Pantera = Panther = cat family = kitty cat

Therefore, in my story, Grimmjow likes milk. Just in case people were wondering "why milk?"


	4. Chapter 4

BLEACH – Into a New World

So. Between revising for tests and exams and stuff, I've managed to squeeze in another chapter! yay~~

This chapter could be a little confusing, but all questions will be answered in later chapters, so just wait for a bit.

All this except Nagi, Keiko, Ayame and others belongs to Tite Kubo~~

* * *

Chapter 4: I Have a Dream

"OH MY GOD! HE'S HEERREE!" Wincing at the sheer volume of the screams, I slowly packed my bag. Surveying the group of female students who were pressed up against the glass, I sighed sadly and shook my head. If only they knew what he was really like.

"He's popular isn't he?" My friend, Keiko commented. "Your boyfriend." I almost choked on my own spit.

"He's not my boyfriend." I managed to splutter.

"Then who is he?"

"He's, uh…a family friend."

"Are you sure he's JUST a family friend?" she wiggled her eyebrows suggestively.

"Yes! I'm sure!" I argued. Quickly, I wrapped my brown scarf around my neck, and the lower half of my face. I could feel a blush coming on.

"Hey, hey, Nagi." It was my other friend, Ayame. "If you're JUST family friends, why did my sister see you two shopping together yesterday?" Now SHE wiggled her eyebrows suggestively. _Crap._

"What?" I snapped, "Can't family friends go shopping together?"

Ayame folded her arms. "Well, usually, girls and boys don't go shopping together unless they're going out. And according to my sister, it looked like you were on a date."

"Well, we weren't. He just wanted milk, and we didn't have any at home-" I only realized my mistake after their eyes grew wide.

"We? Home?" Their eyes bored into me. "You guys are living together?"

"Uh…" there was no way out of this "Well, yes." Clutching each other, they dramatically gazed off into the distance.

"Our little Nagi has grown up." Sighed Keiko.

"She has, hasn't she?" Ayame wiped away a non-existent tear.

"Guys." I half-heartedly complained, amused by their little skit. "I told, you it's not like that. He's only staying with me because, um, his parents are really busy with work, and, uh, they have to travel a lot, and so they left him with me. Because I'm responsible." They looked at me suspiciously.

"Usually, someone would leave their kid with an adult you know?" Ayame stated. _Good point._

"That's um, because he has problems with adults, um he's a little rebellious, and, um, so they thought it would be better to leave him with someone closer to his age."

"But why did they leave him with a girl and not a boy?" Keiko asked.

_Another good point._

"Um, well, that's because, uh, they were afraid that boys would get into fights." They still seemed unconvinced, but thankfully, left it at that. Snatching the golden opportunity, I yelled my good-byes and fled.

* * *

Walking home, I glanced at Grimmjow. "Aren't you cold?" It was already spring, but that day was particularly cold. He was wearing a thin white shirt with a black cardigan vest over it.

"What?" he smirked "Worried about me?" I glared at him.

"Do you know how much cold medicine costs?"

"Nope."

I sighed. _Should've known._ Grimmjow didn't understand the concept of money yet. "Here, use mine." Taking off my scarf, I flung it over his shoulders, ignoring his surprised expression. Taking a few steps, I looked back to see Grimmjow still standing there, with a strange expression in his eyes. "What?" I frowned. _Don't tell me he already has a cold?_ He shook his head.

"Nothin'." We walked in silence for a while before a thought popped into my head.

"Hey, Grimmjow?"

"Yeah?"

"Why do you keep coming to my school?"

"'Coz I feel like it. Got a problem?" I considered. He wasn't causing any harm, so I supposed it was all right. I shook my head.

"No."

"Good." We walked in silence for a little longer, before I stopped. He turned to me, puzzled. "What?"

"Today, I, uh, have tutor, so go home by yourself." He shrugged.

"Alright, suit yourself." Waving goodbye, I headed down the adjacent street. Smiling a little, I thought about how Grimmjow had slightly mellowed during the past week. It made things much easier. Entering the train station, I became serious again. I wondered how things were going to turn out this time.

* * *

"Nagi? Kawada Nagi?" They shook their heads regretfully. "We're sorry. You were really good, and it's such a pity, but we can't sign you up."

"Why?" I clenched my fists. They wouldn't meet my eyes.

"You know why." I did. I did know why.

"My mother did this didn't she?" I murmured. They glanced pityingly at me before calling for the next person to enter the room. In a daze, I wandered the streets of Tokyo until I got to the train station. I shouldn't have been surprised. It happened every time. The results were always the same. Staring blankly out of the window of the train, I wondered if things would ever change. I wondered if my mother would ever change, and allow me to become a singer, instead of blocking my way like this. It was almost midnight by the time I reached home. Grimmjow was sleeping. I had just entered my room when the phone rang. I picked it up.

"Hello?"

"I hear you went to audition again."

"Mother."

The voice on the other line sighed, irritated. "Even after disowning you, you still don't give up, do you?"

"Mother, I told you I want to be a singer. It's my dream."

"And I told you that it's impossible!" she snapped. Flinching, I held the receiver away from my ear. "No matter how many times you try, how many auditions you go to, you know how it's going to end don't you?" I swallowed back tears that were threatening to spill from my eyes.

"Yes." I whispered. Her voice turned smooth again.

"That's why you should just come back and learn the family business so that you can help Kimiko manage it someday. You have the brains for it, I'm sure you'll do well." I swallowed again.

"I can't."

There was a pause. "Do what you want." Then there was a click and the line went dead. Roughly wiping my arm across my eyes, I replaced the receiver. It ended like this every time. Exhausted, I changed and went to bed. I still had to go to school tomorrow.

* * *

"What happened to your eyes?" Keiko scrutinized my face "Did you cry yesterday or something?" Groaning, I covered my face.

"Don't look." I mumbled, taking a bite of my lunch "I was, uh, watching a really sad drama last night, and, um, I cried a lot, and then I went to sleep really late. Midnight actually."

"Which drama?" Ayame asked.

"Uh…" I thought quickly "1 Litre of Tears!" I watched guiltily as tears began to leak out of Ayame's eyes.

"THAT WAS SO SAADDD!" she wailed.

"Yes, yes." Keiko sighed as she patted her back. _Why did you bring that up?_ She mouthed to me. _Sorry. _I mouthed back. Ayame had a reputation for being a crybaby, especially when it came to sad movies or dramas. Last time I watched '1 Litre of Tears' with her, she had literally cried one litre of tears. But thankfully, after that, the conversation turned to other topics.

* * *

Yawning, I trudged home, with my share of free, unsold bread from the bakery. Rubbing my eyes, I wondered if I should take extra shifts. Grimmjow ate A LOT. And the splurging on the milk…I shook my head. The money I had couldn't last. Walking past a dark alleyway, I didn't notice the hands reaching out until too late. I landed hard on my shoulder as the group of men closed in. Scrambling back up, I backed off while eying them cautiously. It wasn't as though I had never been in a situation like this before, and it wasn't as thought I didn't know how to fight. I was, in fact, a black belt in judo, but there were six of them. That was too many. I looked at their hands. Three had knives. Scanning the alley, I looked for things I could use as a weapon. Nothing.

"Oh, look, we got a cutie pie this time." The man at the front grinned, showing his rotting teeth. The others guffawed. The first smirked, encouraged by the others' reactions. "We're gonna have to ask you to hand over your money, sweetheart." Common sense dictated that I should've just handed my money over, and walked away, safe and unharmed. But I needed that money. There was just NO WAY I was going to let my hard earned money slip away like that.

"No." I said.

"No?" His smirk disappeared. "Princess, you better hand it over if you don't wanna get hurt. We got knives here you know?"

"I know." I replied. Scowling, he advanced, knife out in front of him.

"Then we got no choice but to force you." I waited until he was two steps away before I lunged and swung my bag at his head. Yelping, he dropped his knife. Quickly, I picked it up and threw it as far as I could behind me. Seeing their leader down, the others became furious.

"Bitch…" The second knife wielder lunged forward and slashed at me. Dodging to the side, I hissed with pain as the very tip of the knife cut through the skin of my arm. Looking down I sighed with relief. _Thank god it didn't cut my uniform._ But there was no time. I turned to face the other four only to be kicked in the stomach. Coughing, I moved back. Except, they didn't even give me time to breathe. The next punch skimmed my cheek, leaving an angry red mark. Panting, I realized there was nothing I could do. My heart plummeted.

"Hey, hey, this looks fun." My head shot up.

"This voice…Grimmjow!" _But what's he doing here?_ Cracking his knuckles, he moved into shadows of the alley.

"I've been waitin' for a chance like this." He grinned, showing his teeth like a predator. Nervous, I moved further back. Springing forward, he rammed his fist into the first mans stomach. I watched, gaping, as he pounded the six men into the ground within seconds. "Weak." He frowned as he shook out his fist. "Too weak." Turning, he spotted me standing there with my mouth open. "Come on, we're goin'." Gingerly I stepped over the unconscious bodies of the men.

"You didn't kill then did you?" I asked, worried.

"Dunno." he shrugged "Might've." Panicky, I rushed back to the six to check their pulses. It was only after I confirmed that they were alive, did I relax. Catching up with Grimmjow, I called the ambulance to report the beaten up men.

"What?" Grimmjow was staring at me.

"Why do you care if those little shits are alive or dead? Didn't they try to hurt you?"

I sighed. "Because firstly, I never want to be the cause of someone's death. Secondly, in this world, if you kill someone, they lock you up. And thirdly, they probably have families or people who care about them too."

Grimmjow scowled. "You're such an idiot. Look, you even got cut." He yanked up my bleeding arm.

"Ow! Grimmjow!" dropping my arm, I thought I heard him mutter a 'sorry' but I couldn't be sure. "Anyway, what were you doing here?"

"I was bored and went for a walk, ok? And I didn't do that to save you. I just needed the exercise."

"Alright, alright." I raised my hands in surrender. "But thanks anyway."

"Hmph. I don't need your thanks." He looked at me "Come on, Nagi. Let's go home."

Eyes wide, I stared at him in wonder.

"What?" he snapped, irritated.

"You remembered my name."

He sighed with exasperation. "I always knew it. I just didn't feel like sayin' it until now, ok? Got a problem?" Shaking my head, I just smiled.

"No."

* * *

I just have to put in, that 1 Litre of Tears is a real japanese drama. It's the most, sad, emotional, heart-wrenching, tear-jerking drama I have ever seen. So if you have any time, check it out, its around 13 episodes.


	5. Chapter 5

BLEACH – Into a New World

Hey guys~~

Well, considering how busy I've been, it's pretty much a miracle that I've managed to write another chapter, short as it is. BUT! WE FINALLY HAVE SOME BACKGROUND INFO ON NAGI!

Like always, there will be some notes on the stuff in the chapter at the end.

DISCLAIMER: I own Nagi, Ayame and Keiko and a couple others. The rest is owned by Tite Kubo.

* * *

Chapter 5: Knight in Shining Armor

"Look! Look! It's that doggy I was telling you about!" I beamed at my friends.

They glanced at each other and frowned. "What doggy? I don't see any doggy."

"Why? It's just there." I pointed at the strange looking dog "It has a chain coming out of it."

They looked at me strangely before running to the teacher. "Teacheerrr! Nagi's telling lies again!"

The teacher looked at me, sighing. "Nagi, you shouldn't tell lies. Didn't I tell you before?"

"But Miss, I'm not lying!" tears had begun to leak out of my golden eyes. "It's true!" She just shook her head at me sadly. "Nagi, if you lie, then no one will play with you." Sighing, she moved off to break up a squabble between two boys.

"But I'm not lying." I whispered, head hung low.

* * *

"Mummy." I sniffled as I crawled onto her lap. "Today at school, I was called a liar again." I wiped my running nose with my sleeve. Gently, she pulled my arm away from my face and handed me a tissue.

"Oh, Nagi. Did you talk about the spirits again?"

"Yes." Sullenly I nodded. Sighing, she pulled my into a warm hug.  
"Nagi, don't talk about that with your friends anymore. Other people can't see them you know?" I looked up into her gentle face, golden eyes framed by silky brown hair.

"But then why can we see them?"

She smiled. "It's because we're special."

"Special?"

"Yes, special. So this will be our little secret. When you see something interesting, come talk to mummy about it, and mummy will tell you when I see something interesting too alright?" I stuck my pinky out.

"Pinky promise?"

Chuckling, she linked hers with mine. "Pinky promise." I sat there for a while, content.

"Mummy?"

"Yes?"

"Can you sing a song for me?"

"Of course."

* * *

Opening my eyes, I sat up in my bed. Checking the clock on the wall, I realized that it was only 2:00 in the morning. I touched my face. Tears. I had cried while dreaming about the past. Roughly wiping them away, I hugged my pillow as I looked at the two pictures that sat, framed, on my bedside table. One was of my mother and I; the other was of my father and I. There were no pictures of my mother and father together. Because they weren't supposed to be together. I was a bastard child.

Apparently, my father, Sanosuke Akimoto had come to Karakura town on a business trip. It was here that he met my mother, Yukiko Kawada and fell in love with her. They lived happily for a while. But my father knew that it would never work, he had to return to his legal wife. Leaving my mother, he didn't know she was pregnant. So my mother gave birth to me alone and raised me alone, enduring whispers behind her back and disapproving glances for 10 years. Until she died in a car crash. After she died, I was passed around to various relatives, but none wanted to keep me. Because I was a bastard child. It was only a year later that my father, owner of the internationally known Akimoto Electronics learned of my existence and took me in. I was 11 at that time. Although he was kind to me, my new mother was not. My golden eyes constantly reminded her of her husband's betrayal. Later that year, he was diagnosed with cancer. There were whispers that I was bad luck, and that my golden eyes cursed people. He fought the disease for three years, before it finally overwhelmed him. There were more whispers about me at the funeral. It was then, when I made the decision to move back to Karakura town by myself and to pursue my dreams of becoming a singer. Hearing my plans, she had immediately agreed. She even gave me money. In truth, anybody could tell that she was just waiting for a chance to get rid of me. But that all changed later.

Sighing, I shook me head and buried my face into my pillow. It wasn't good to think about the past.

* * *

"Nagi! We're out of milk." Grimmjow slammed shut the door of the fridge.

"Grimmjow! We're out of money." I retorted, hopping around the room, trying to get my shoes on.

"Tch. You're useless." He muttered, "I'm going to see if that woman-Orihime has any."

I rolled my eyes. "Right. I buy you 12 litres of milk and I'm useless." Sprinting out of the door, I yelled to Grimmjow to lock the door behind him. I was going to be late. Sprinting to school, I spotted Ayame and Keiko, also sprinting. "Ayame! Keiko!" I called, waving madly.

"Nagi!" they huffed "Morning!"

"Morning." I panted. We were nearly there.

"The gate!" they had just began to close it. With an extra burst of speed, we just managed to slide though before it shut completely.

The teacher in charge tutted at us. "Just like boys." She muttered. The three of us just laughed. Still slightly out of breath, we just managed to get to our seats before the teacher came in. After all that happened to me, I was glad to have a normal morning again.

* * *

"What happened to your face?" Ayame asked staring at the bruise on my cheek.

"Nearly got mugged last night." I mumbled through the bread. Their eyes grew wide.

"Seriously?" Keiko blurted.

"Yup. Six of them." Diving forward, she clutched my shoulders.

"Are you ok? Did you get hurt?" she shook me violently.

"I'm fine, I'm fine." Wincing slightly, I gently pushed her back into her seat. "Grimmjow just happened to be taking a walk around that area and he helped me out." Their eyebrows almost reached their hairlines.

"Grimmjow huh?" they glanced at each other.

"What?" I stopped chewing to stare at them.

Crossing their arms, they nodded sagely. "We predicted this would happen."

"If you predicted that I would be mugged, why didn't you tell me?"

"Not that!" Ayame flicked my forehead "We predicted that Grimmjow would become your prince, your savior, your knight in shining armor."

"Prince? Knight?" I rolled my eyes. "You need to get your eyes checked."

"No, no, no." she wagged her finger at me. "Here, let me give you evidence. Keiko?" I watched in astonishment as Keiko whipped out a sheet of paper titled 'Evidence of Grimmjow Being Nagi's Prince.'

"Ahem." Keiko cleared her throat. "Number one: He's amazingly attractive."

"So?" I argued, "That doesn't ha-"

"Wait!" Ayame stuck her palm into my face. "We're not done yet."

"Number two," Keiko announced, "he lives with you. Number three: he walks you back home. And now…" she grabbed a pencil. "Number four: he saved you. There." she put the pencil down, satisfied. Groaning, I buried my face in my hands to hide the blush that was coming on.

"Guys…" I muttered "Not funny."

"Alright, alright." They laughed, "We'll stop." Their eyes twinkled. "For now." I groaned again.

"Hey, now that I think of it, Golden Week is coming up isn't it?" Ayame propped her chin on her hands.

"Yeah! We should do something!" Keiko sat up straighter, excited.

"Like what? Studying?"

"No." Ayame wrinkled her nose at me. "Like going to the beach."

"Now here's someone with a good idea." Keiko nodded approvingly.

"Asoudesuka?" I asked, grinning at Keiko.

"Asoudesune." She grinned back. We sat there giggling until Ayame bought her fists down on our heads.

"Stop making fun of my surname." She huffed, but we could tell that she was mildly amused as well. "Back to the topic, I think we should go to the beach."

"But it's spring. Beaches are for summer."

"So?" Keiko shrugged "it's almost summer anyway."

"It's a month away." I pointed out.

"Whatever." Ayame flicked my forehead again. "I'm sure lots of people are going to the beach as well."

"Alright! So it's decided! We're going to the beach!" Keiko did a fist pump.

"But…fine." I gave up. Their stares were just much too intense.

"Good!" Ayame clapped her hands together. "So, we'll meet up at the train station on Tuesday next week at around 10:00am. How's that?"

Keiko nodded her head enthusiastically. "Sounds good to me."

They both turned to look at me. "Nagi?"

I sighed. "Well, I don't know." I fiddled with the straw of my juice box. "It might take a while to get Grimmjow organized…" I knew I was in trouble when their eyes lit up.

"Oh, no, no, no." Ayame shook her head, chuckling. "Don't worry about that." I eyed her warily, sipping on my juice box.

"Why?"

"Because he's coming with us." Eyes widening, I drew in a deep breath, preparing to rebut their idea straight away. Too bad I forgot I had juice in my mouth. My eyes watered as the juice rushed up my nose. Coughing and spluttering, I managed to utter a 'never!' before another coughing fit overtook me. Shaking with the effort of holding back their laughter, they patted my back until I regained control.

"No! Nononononono." I made a cross sign with my arms. "That is NEVER going to happen."

"Why not?" they were grinning slyly at me.

"Because-"

"Scared of him seeing you in a swimsuit?" Ayame butted in, winking at me.

"NO!" my face turned red "That's not it! It's because-"

"Don't want him to check out girls other than you?" it was Keiko this time.

"NO!" my face upgraded to an ugly shade of crimson.

"Then what?"

"It's because…uh…because…" I stuttered, unable to come up with a proper reason.

"See? There's no reason he can't." Keiko sat back triumphantly. I sighed. I always lost at things like this. Their eyes burned into me.

"Make sure you do ask him. Otherwise, we'll come over to check."

"Alright, alright." I hoped he would say no.

* * *

"Um, Grimmjow?" I shifted from foot to foot.

"Yeah? What?"

"Um, next week, my friends and I are going to the beach and they just want to know if you want to come along too…"

"Sure, I'll come." Silently, I groaned. Grimmjow lay sprawled over the couch, flicking through the channels on T.V.

"Oh," I twisted my fingers together "but it'll be pretty boring for you, I mean, you can't fight or anything."

"So what are you gonna to do?"

"Uh, just play in the sand, and the sea, I guess."

"I know sand, but sea? Never heard of that." He glanced at me "Sounds interestin' enough."

"Alright then." I sighed, giving up. "We're going next Tuesday."

* * *

Alright. So, **Golden Week** is a week long public holiday in Japan which starts on April 29th (I think). It's a popular time to travel and to go out with friends and family.

**Asoudesuka** and **Asoudesune** are puns.

Basically, in Japanese, **Soudesuka** means "oh really?" and **Soudesune** means "yes, really". And since Ayame's surname is **Asou**, they're making a pun out of her surname. So it becomes "Ah~ is that so?" and "Ah~ I see." type of thing.

**Desuka** is basically a question mark, but in this context, it's not really a question, but just a confirmation. **Desune** is pretty much just agreeing to what the first person said, but if used in this context, it's just confirming stuff.

I hope I explained it properly. JAPANESE PUNS ARE AWESOME.


	6. Chapter 6

BLEACH – Into a New World

Alright guys! This is the beach chapter~~

As always, there will be footnotes.

Disclaimer: Nagi, etc, etc, are owned by me, but the rest are owned by Tite Kubo.

* * *

Chapter 6: To the Beach

"So." Grimmjow crossed his arms, scowling. "Why the hell are these two here as well?"

"That's my line!" Kurosaki retorted, "No one told me you would be here too." They glared at each other while Ayame and Keiko gaped. They sidled over to me.

"Do these two know each other?"

I sighed. "Yeah."

Hearing my voice, Grimmjow whipped his head around to glower at me. "Look, I don't care about Orihime, but why the hell does HE have to be here?"

"The more the merrier right?" I shrugged nonchalantly. If looks could kill, I would've been killed twice over by Grimmjow's stare. Fuming, he violently threw his bag onto the ground, causing several bystanders to look at us. I felt my cheeks heat up. I wasn't very good with this sort of attention.

"Wait, wait, calm down, hang on a second." I quickly held my hands out in a 'calm down' position. Creeping over to him, I murmured quietly, "Think about it this way. Isn't this the perfect chance to compete with him and prove that you're better?" I watched with relief as his scowl slowly disappeared, replaced with a smirk. I sighed with relief, wiping a few droplets of sweat from my brow. It was a good thing he was so gullible when it came to things like this.

"Alright then," I picked up my bag "let's go."

* * *

"Psst." Ayame hissed to me. "What's wrong with those two?" She subtly pointed at Kurosaki and Grimmjow who seemed to be having a glaring competition. We were on the Shinkansen, on our way to Morito-Kaigan, a popular beach. "Are you sure it was the right decision to have them sit together?" I looked at Orihime. It was her suggestion.

"Well," she smiled sheepishly, "I thought that maybe, by having them sit together, they might become friendlier."

"Orihime," Keiko sighed, "not everyone is willing to be friends like you."

"She's right," Ayame agreed, "you're just too nice." Ayame, Keiko and Orihime and become acquainted through me after I started working at the bakery. She was the only friend we had outside of our own class.

"Well," she shrugged, "you never know. It could happen." I shook my head. That was completely impossible, but I had to give her points for optimism.

* * *

"THE BEACCHHHH!" I watched, amused as Ayame, Keiko and Orihime danced around like little kids. We had finally arrived and the weather was amazing. Clear blue skies without a cloud in sight. As Ayame predicted, although it was only spring, there were already plenty of people enjoying the sunshine.

"Nagi." Grimmjow was staring at the sea with a look of…horror? I couldn't believe it. He turned to me. "Is this the sea?"

"Um…yeah." For the second time that day, he violently threw his bag onto the ground.

"You didn't tell me that the sea was a massive shitload of water!" he accused me.

"You didn't ask." I retorted "besides, what's wrong with water?"

"Nothin', but-" he sighed, exasperated, running his hand through his blue hair. "don'tcha think this is a little too much water?"

I rolled my eyes. "That's why it's the sea."

He narrowed his eyes at me. "Don't try to act smart."

"Alright." I peeked at him from the corner of my eye. "Hey Grimmjow, could it be…you're scared of w-"

"No!" he cut me off abruptly. He glowered at me "You watch your mouth, girl."

"Alright." _So it's back to 'girl' again, huh?_

"Hey!" Orihime was waving to me. While we were talking, she had already found a spot for us to set up, even if it was small and a bit crowded.

"Coming!" I called back. "Come on Grimmjow. You don't have to get in the water, so just be civil. Please." Still scowling, he grudgingly followed me to join the others.

"Alright," Keiko put her hands on her hips. "now that our beach umbrella's up, lets go swim!"

"Nah," I laid out my towel. Swimming wasn't really my thing. "Maybe later."

She glanced at me. "You have your swimsuit on underneath right?"

I looked at her suspiciously. "Yes…why?" Without warning she pulled off my baggy t-shirt in one swift movement, leaving me standing in my modest one piece, still unable to react. Once my brain finally caught up, I snatched my t-shirt out of her hands and clutched it to my chest, glaring at her.

She sighed with disappointment, shaking her head mournfully. "I should've known it was going to be a one piece." I saw her eyes slide sideways, to Grimmjow who was standing beside me. I looked at him. He was staring.

"What are you looking at?" I snapped, clutching my t-shirt even closer.

"Nothin'." He muttered, turning away quickly. "Not like there's anythin' to look at anyway." Childishly, I stuck my tongue out at his back. Sighing, Ayame yanked my t-shirt out of my hands, and dragged me towards the sea, despite my protests. But after a few minutes in the water, I began to enjoy myself. Suddenly remembering Grimmjow, I looked back towards the beach to check how he was doing. I needn't have bothered. The area where he was supposed to be was surrounded by girls and women to the extent that I couldn't even see him. I bit my lip worriedly.

"I hope he keeps his temper in check." I murmured quietly, but Ayame overheard.

"Worried about him, Nagi?" she teased, "Worried he's going to be snatched away by some other girl?"

"No!" I replied indignantly. "I'm worried about the girls there! Who knows what he's going to do when he gets annoyed." As if I had predicted the future, two girls burst out of the crowed, bawling their eyes out, and the others quickly dispersed as well, leaving a ring of empty space around our spot. I gave Ayame an I-told-you-so look. She shrugged. "Well, at least we have more space now."

* * *

Floating on my back, I relaxed, staring up at the blue sky. Gradually my thoughts drifted. Involuntarily, I began to hum.

"Kalafina again?" Keiko asked as she swam past me.

Surprised, I moved to an upright position. Sheepishly I chuckled. "Yeah. But I can't help it, they're my favorite band." Dreamily, I floated on my back again "They're amazing."

Keiko laughed. "You're pretty amazing yourself, to be able to sing so well. You sound just like a professional."

"Really?" Excited, I paddled over to her. "Do I really sound like a professional?"

Giggling, she nodded. "You do, but don't get too full of yourself just because I said that." Playfully she flicked some water at me. Spluttering, I swiped my arm over the surface of the water, aiming the small tsunami at her face. Soon, we were up to our necks in a water-splashing war, Orihime and Ayame taking Keiko's side and my side respectively, but later, it somehow turned into a four-way fight. Ten minutes in, I had already exhausted myself.

"Time out! Time out!" I yelled, flailing around, trying to defend myself from the attacks. Panting, I began to wade to the shore. Shading my eyes from the sun, I noticed that Grimmjow and Kurosaki seemed to be deep in conversation. _What the heck? _I had thought they were going to turn the beach into a battlefield, and although relieved that they hadn't, I was slightly weirded out by the scene that was before my eyes. _Am I seeing things?_ I squinted harder. _Nope. _I wasn't. They were so involved in their little talk; they didn't even notice me as I slowly made my way to the umbrella.

"…For her." Kurosaki said.

"For who?" They both jolted, surprised to see me standing behind them, with my t-shirt back on.

"For who?" I repeated my question, curious. "What are you talking about?"

Grimmjow scowled. "None of your business!" he snapped.

I shrugged. "Ok, fine." It didn't seem important anyway.

* * *

"WAAAHHHH!" I twitched as the young boy ran off, wailing at the top of his voice.

Sighing, I closed my book for the fifth time.

"Grimmjow." I struggled to keep my temper in check. "I thought I asked you to stop terrorizing the children."

"ME? Terrorizin' the CHILDREN?" he angrily looked at me. "Are you shittin' me? THEY were the ones terrorizin' ME!"

"They were just curious about your hair."

"No shit! What's so wrong about my hair?"

"Uh," I pointed out the obvious. "it's blue."

"So?"

I sighed again. He just didn't get it. Spotting the boy's mother angrily stomping towards us, I quickly got up went forward to apologize for Grimmjow. For the fifth time. After several minutes of bowing and asking for forgiveness, the boy's mother finally returned to her spot, satisfied, with the still sniffling boy tagging along behind her. Turning around, I found another crisis. There was a young girl this time, hovering around Grimmjow, staring at his hair with her mouth watering. I couldn't really blame her. After all, it DID look like ice cream. But it was becoming dangerous; I could see a vein in his temple pulsing. Sprinting through the sand, I slid between Grimmjow and the would-be-victim. And just in time too. Grimmjow looked like he as about to explode.

"Little girl!" I smiled, overly brightly. "Are you lost? You look lost. Where's your mum? Is she over there?" Gently, I pushed her away from Grimmjow. "I think your mum's looking for you." Glancing around, she spotted the waving woman and scampered in that direction. I sighed with relief. _Crisis averted._

Turning around, I glared at Grimmjow, hands on my hips. "Can't you just _try_ to be nicer?"

"No."

"Stop being stubborn."

"No. YOU stop bein' stubborn."

Frustrated, I blew my fringe out of my face. "Look at Kurosaki. He's being nice and letting the kids play with him." I pointed at a still/sleeping Kurosaki, who children were covering with sand.

Grimmjow's eyebrows shot down. "Are you sayin' that he's better than me?"

I crossed my arms. "Well, not exactly, but-" but before I could finish my sentence, he was already standing up and glaring at me.

"I can be nice when I want to! Just watch me!" and with that, he stalked off. Frowning, I sat down and opened my book again. I wasn't exactly sure what he was planning, but to be honest, I didn't really care anymore. Next time, he could clean up his own mess.

* * *

Several minutes later, he was back.

"See?" he looked down at me triumphantly with his arms crossed over his chest. "I CAN be nice. When I want to." Looking up at him, I struggled to contain my laughter. Grimmjow had several young children clinging onto him, and there was even one chomping on his blue hair.

"Uh…" I coughed to hide my giggles. "I see. Um. You're actually a very, um, nice person. When you want to be."

"Good. Now get these brats off me."

Fighting to keep a straight face, I carefully removed the children from him and sent them back to their parents. Sighing, I straightened up. I frowned as I checked my watch. It was already 6:00. _When was the last train again? _I rummaged around in my backpack for the timetable

"Aha, here it is." I murmured, flipping through the pages. "Let's see…oh CRAP!" the last train was in 20 minutes. Arms flailing, I rushed down to the waters edge. "GUYS! THE LAST TRAIN IS IN 20 MINUTES!" There was a momentary pause before everyone began to panic.

"Oh my god, oh my god, oh my god!"

"Crap, hurry up!"

"Wait, we have to pack up!"

"I can't find my other shoe!"

"Who's going to carry the umbrella?"

"Pah! Pah! There's sand in my mouth!"

Sprinting all they way to the station, we slipped into the train seconds before the doors slid shut. Collectively, we sighed with relief. Flopping into our seats, we took a moment to catch our breath.

After a moment, Ayame spoke up. "Hey Nagi, sing us a song. We haven't heard you sing in ages"

Grimmjow raised his eyebrows. "You sing?"

"Yeah?" I snapped defensively, cheeks reddening, "So what?"

He grimaced. "Not sure I wanna hear anymore singin'."

"Oh?" Keiko, Ayame and Orihime leaned forward, curious. "Why?"

"Only singin' I've ever heard was Szayel's when he was happy about gettin' a new test subject. Made me wanna rip my ears off." He shuddered.

"Well," Keiko crossed her arms smugly "you don't have to worry about Nagi. She sings like an angel. Give him a demo, Nagi."

"What?" I blushed. "No! Not here!" I hissed.

"Don't worry." Keiko waved away my concern. "We're the only ones in this carriage."

I looked around. She was right.

"But…" I trailed off. I always lost at things like this. I sighed. "Alright, but just a little bit." Taking a deep breath, I began to sing. Everyone fell quiet and I felt their eyes on me. It was making me nervous. Closing my eyes, I ignored the stares and concentrated on the sounds flowing out of my mouth. As the last note faded, I anxiously opened my eyes to gauge their reactions. _I hope it was ok._

Ayame had a satisfied smile on her face. "You've gotten even better haven't you?"

"Well, not really." I replied modestly. But I was pleased.

"You sing incredibly well." Orihime still had a dazed look on her face.

"Yeah." Kurosaki seemed surprised. "I didn't know we had a singer like you at our school."

"Hah!" Keiko thumped me on my back. "Well, she's a diamond in the rough."

She turned to Grimmjow. "Well? What you think? Grimmjow?"

He had an uncharacteristically blank look on his face and his eyes were glazed.

"Grimmjow?"

"Huh? What?" he snapped back to the present. "Oh, yeah." He scratched his head. "Well, it wasn't really bad. It was pretty good. I guess."

Quickly, I looked away. I could feel my face heat up from his compliment. Why did I feel so insanely happy just by hearing him compliment me? I tried to justify my feelings. _It's because he never compliments people. _I told myself. But that blissful feeling stayed with me for the rest of that day.

* * *

Well. A **Shinkansen** is a bullet train which goes faster than normal ones. There are several different types but it's too confusing to explain.

**Morito-Kaigan** is an actual beach in Japan, near Tokyo. Yup, I did my research. XD

**Kalafina**, is an actual band in Japan. they're not like the usual bands, because they have a more operatic style of singing. They sing the opening and endings for all the Kara no Kyoukai movies as well as the opening for Mahou Shoujo Madoka Magica and a couple of others. They're a trio by the way.

And I'm not entirely sure if Szayel sings or not, but he seemed like the most likely one to sing out of all the Arrancars.


	7. Chapter 7

BLEACH – Into a New World

Chapter 7: Mine

Alright~ development on the romance!

So, I don't have much to say, except I'm still quite busy, but I'll do my best to get the next chapter out A.S.A.P.

Disclaimer~~ All except Nagi are owned by Tite Kubo.

Enjoy~~

* * *

"Hey, Nagi."

"What?" I scrubbed vigorously at the dishes.

"We're out of milk."

"Again?" I groaned turning around. "It's all because you…" I trailed off, ears turning red. He was standing there with a towel clinging to his hips, peering into the fridge. "Grimmjow!" Eyes spinning, I quickly turned back and focused on washing the dishes. "I know you just had a shower, but put some clothes on!"

"No. Why?" He slammed the fridge door shut and flopped into a chair.

"Because…" _Because I'm standing right here and it's really distracting to have you sitting there with just a towel around your hips. _"Because we're going out to buy milk now. And you can't go out like that."

"Why not?"

_Is he joking or being serious? _I glanced over my shoulder. His eyes were twinkling. _All right, he's joking._

I sighed. "Just go get changed please."

He got up. "Alright, we'll go when I'm done." As he ambled into the living room, I couldn't help but take one last glance at his muscled back.

* * *

"Why can't you just buy it here, now?" Grimmjow scowled, arms crossed over his chest.

"Because it's expensive here." I explained patiently.

"So?"

I sighed. "Listen, if it's expensive, then it means that we can't buy as much with this amount of money. If we go to another place where it's cheaper, we can use the same amount of money, but buy more. Got it?"

He paused, contemplating. Finally he shrugged. "Fine, do whatever you want."

"Good. Hmmm…" I tapped my chin with a finger, thinking. "If I remember correctly, there's a shop close to here with cheaper stuff. We'll go there."

Exiting the store, we had only walked a couple of steps when something caught my eye. It was a bracelet. I wasn't the type of person who was into clothes makeup or jewelry. In fact, I owned no makeup or jewelry whatsoever. Unless my watch is counted as jewelry. But the simple leather bracelet was totally my type of thing. It was a thin band of black leather, with had small swirling carvings in it. I checked the price. It was 2000 Yen. I sighed, head drooping. It was too expensive for a poor student like me. I noticed Grimmjow staring at me curiously.

"What is it?" he asked.

I shook my head, reluctantly tearing myself away from the window of the small store. "It's nothing. Let's go." But we didn't get far before something else caught my attention. It was a rank stink that emanated from the dark alleyway we were passing by. I wrinkled my nose. It smelled like a smorgasbord of bad things like rotten eggs and feces. "What is that smell?" I muttered as I squinted, peering into the shadows. There seemed to be something lying there, but before I could tell what it was, Grimmjow shifted and blocked my vision. "Grimmjow!" I complained.

He glared at me. "Stop wastin' time here, and go buy the milk." Grabbing my arm, he propelled me along the street.

I sighed. He was so demanding.

* * *

"Thank you! Come again!"

Yawning, I walked out of the shop with several cartons of milk. I tossed one to Grimmjow. "Let's go home. It's late and I'm tired." Passing by the alleyway again, I tried to make out what the source of the smell was, but Grimmjow blocked my view. Again. I sighed, giving up. _It's probably just rotting garbage. _Catching sight of the shop again, I slowed down to admire the bracelet again. It was so pretty. But it was outside my budget. Shaking my head I sped up again. _It's just a passing whim. _I told myself. _But it's so pretty…_ I was so absorbed in my thoughts, I didn't realize that Grimmjow had stopped walking, and so I walked smack bang into the muscular back I was admiring earlier. Walking into a wall of muscle was _painful._

"Ow!" I yelped rubbing my nose. "Why did you stop so suddenly?"

"Oh, shut up." He snapped. "You should just watch where you're goin'."

I had no come back for that one. "Sorry." I muttered sullenly. "But why did you stop?"

"Just forgot to get somethin' back there."

"Really?" I was curious. "What did you forget?"

"None of your business!" he snapped, more aggressively than he needed to be.

"Jeez, fine." I backed off. "Let's go then."

"No, I'm goin, you're stayin here."

"Eh?" I was confused. "Why?"

"'Coz I said so."

I pulled a face, but I knew better than to argue with him.

"Fine. Do you need money?"

He shook his head. "Nah."

I watched him stroll back as I leaned on a lamppost. It wasn't like him to be so secretive. _Just what did he forget?_

* * *

"Hey babe." I looked up. There were three sleazy looking teenagers sniggering and checking me out. "You alone?"

"Uh, no. I'm actually waiting for someone."

"Really?" The leader made an exaggerated motion of looking around. "I don't see anyone. Did you get stood up by your boyfriend?"

"Um, no, I don't have a boyfriend."

"Really?" He slid closer to me. "Then it should be fine to come with us right? Besides, it's dangerous for a lone girl to wander the streets at night." _Are you crazy? You're the danger around here. _I glanced at his skinny frame. _Not really._

I wondered if it was ok for me to hit him. "No, I'm-"

He slipped a scrawny arm around my waist, as the other two closed in. "Come on." He whispered close to my ear. "It's gonna be fun." His breath smelled like cigarette smoke.

My patience was reaching its breaking point. I was ready to pummel him and his stupid friends into the dirt.

"What the hell do you think you're doin'?" It was Grimmjow. His eyes glittered dangerously.

"Go away!" the youth demanded imperiously. "It's got nothing to do with you!"

Grimmjows gaze flicked to my face. "Doesn't look like she likes it."

"Shut up!" the teenage boy blustered. "You don't know anything! Can't you tell that she's having fun?" All four males paused to check my expression. I had my neutral face on. My neutral face was my angry face, and only Grimmjow knew that. He smirked.

"Looks like you're the one who doesn't know shit." He sauntered closer. "Don't go takin' other people's things without their permission." Grabbing my arm, he pulled me closer to him. "This girl is mine." Against my will, I felt my face heat up. _Calm down, calm down. He doesn't mean it in a girlfriend way, just in an object way. You know how he is. He thinks everything belongs to him. So just calm down already! _

Muttering, the three teenagers finally slunk away. Unknown to him, Grimmjow had just saved their asses from my fists.

"Uh, thanks." I murmured staring down at the ground. I was waiting for my face to go back to its normal colour. Grimmjow 'Tsk'ed' at me.

"You can't just stand there lookin' dopey! It's like you're askin' to be kidnapped or somethin'!"

"What? I wasn't looking dopey!" I protested. "This is my default facial expression!"

"Whatever," he waved away my protest. "This is the first and last time I ever help you out. Anyway, catch."

Fumbling, I managed to catch the small brown package he chucked at me. "What's this?"

He shrugged. "Consider it as payment for the milk."

Carefully unwrapping it, my mouth fell open. It was the leather bracelet that I had admired so much. "This-this-" I stammered. "How did you know?"

He looked at me like I was an idiot. "How could I NOT know? You were pressed up against the glass and your eyes were the size of dishes."

"I wasn't pressed up against the glass." I muttered quietly to myself. "But," I peered at him curiously. "How did you pay for it?"

His face darkened. "Do you know what I do at that shitty Shinigami's place when you go to school?"

"No."

"I work. He makes me work."

"He MAKES you work?" I raised an eyebrow skeptically. I couldn't imagine ANYONE being able to MAKE him do anything he didn't want to do. _I have to get a few tips of Mr. Urahara. _ "So he pays you?"

"Yeah." He grumbled.

"And…" I looked at the leather bracelet. "You used your money to buy this for me."

"Yeah." He glanced at me. "Compensation for the milk."

I was touched. Grimmjow had used his own money to buy me this bracelet. Reverently, I slipped it onto my wrist. "Thank you." I smiled shyly at him. It wasn't often I was given gifts.

Coughing, he looked away. "I told you, it was for the milk."

* * *

"Ohhh…nice bracelet." Orihime admired the leather band around my wrist during our shift in the bakery.

"Thanks." I grinned.

"So who gave it to you?"

"Huh?" I stared at her in surprise. _How did she know?_

"Nagi," she sighed. "I've known you for a whole year now. I know how stingy you are when it comes to money." Her eyes sparkled. "So who did you get it from?"

"Uh…" My eyes slid to the open sign that hung on the door.

"Nagi." Orihime planted her hands on her hips sternly. "Look at me in the eye and say it."

Unwillingly, I raised my eyes to meet hers. "It was…" _Crap. _I was no good at lying. "It was Grimmjow." I sighed.

"I knew it!" she laughed, clapping her hands delightedly.

"What?" I gaped. "How?"

"Remember that day we went to the beach?" I nodded. "Well, when we were going home, Kurosaki told me about a conversation he had with Grimmjow."

I frowned, thinking. I did seem to recall seeing Kurosaki and Grimmjow talking. "So what were they saying?"

She giggled. "Apparently, Grimmjow inadvertently told Kurosaki that he was having trouble dealing with you-"

"Trouble dealing with me?" I blurted, astonished. "It's the other way around! I have trouble dealing with HIM!"

Orihime shushed me. "Just listen for now. Well, anyway, it seems Kurosaki told him to do something nice for you. And that's why I knew that bracelet was from Grimmjow."

"Really?" I was stunned. I would never have expected for Grimmjow to take in Kurosaki's advice. "But." I frowned. "Why does he think he has to be nice to me?"

Orihime stared at me for a moment before collapsing in a fit of laughter. "Nagi, you're so slow at things like this." She gasped, still giggling.

"What? Just tell me."

She shook her head. "No, I won't. This is something you have to find out for yourself. But." She looked at me, her gray eyes glinting. "Let me tell you this much. Although he was very violent, rude and inconsiderate when he first came here, he's changed a lot after meeting you."

"Awww." Modestly, I waved away her compliment "Really, I didn't do anything. I just taught him about some human stuff, that's all."

Looking at me, she just sighed. _Did I say something wrong? _I wondered.

"Anyway," she continued, "my point is, that he's become a really good person, and even though sometimes, he seems very rough and coarse, it's just because he doesn't know how to express himself properly, so he uses his actions to show his feelings. For him, actions speak louder than words. Got it?"

"Ok…" I nodded, slightly confused. _Why is she telling me all this?_

"Girls!" It was the owner. "It's closing time, you can both go home now, but be careful."

"Why?" I asked, puzzled.

"Well, yesterday," she lowered her voice to a whisper. "a dead body of a homeless man was found near the Karakura Shopping District."

"What?" My eyes grew wide. _That was where I was last night. Could it be, that smell…_ "Can you tell me where exactly they found him?"

"Ummm…" she scratched her head. "I think it was in an alleyway next to Seven Eleven." I felt the hairs on my skin stand up. That was they alleyway we had passed on our way to the other store. _Grimmjow kept blocking my view that time. Could it be, that he was trying not to let me see the dead body? He was trying to…protect me?_

I stood there dumbfounded. _'Actions speak louder than words.' _Orihime had said.

"That's horrible." Orihime had a distressed expression on her face. "How-how did he die?"

She shrugged. "We don't know. Apparently, there were no marks on him. But all his internal organs were gone. So just be careful."

* * *

I shivered slightly as I hurried home. Everything seemed so much more menacing. _It would be bad if I were attacked. _Picking up the pace, I didn't notice a shadow detach itself from the rest of the darkness, and follow me.


	8. Chapter 8

BLEACH – Into a New World

GAHH! Sorry for the long wait guys! I've been busy...(distracted...).

I'll try to update more often, now that I'm slightly less distracted.

Anyway, Enjoy~~

DISCLAIMER: Bleach belongs to Tite Kubo.

* * *

Chapter 8: Thank You

Reaching my apartment complex, I breathed a sigh of relief. I was safe. Suddenly, I heard footsteps behind me. _The murderer? _Whirling around, I clutched my free bread to my chest for protection, as useless as it was. There was a cloaked person standing under the flickering streetlamp, their low hood shadowing their face, making it impossible to tell if it was a man or woman.

"I'm hungry…" the person whispered. I let go of the breath I had unconsciously been holding since I heard the footsteps. _Relax, Nagi. It's just a poor homeless man begging for food. _I looked at the bag of bread I held, contemplating whether to give it to him or not. _I still have lots at home so it should be ok._

Smiling, I held out the bag. "Here, you can have this."

He didn't move. "Hungry…" he whispered again.

I frowned a little. "I said you can take this." _Why isn't he moving?_ I took a step towards him. "Come on, take it already."

"Hungry…" My frown deepened. His voice sounded familiar. But where was it from? I took a few more steps forward until I was directly in front of him. "Just hurry up and-" He slowly raised his hands and pulled off the hood. I gasped, dropping the bread. It was the boy from the other day. _What is he doing here? But he seems a little different from before. Why?_

"Hungry…" Eyes blank, he swayed towards me. Alarmed, I stumbled as I moved back. Something was wrong. I could just feel it. Halting, he opened his jaws impossibly wide. I watched in horror as a large dark shape emerged from his mouth, leaving the body crumpled on the pavement. I recognized it as a Hollow; Mr. Urahara had described them to me before. "I'm hungry…" it moaned, dropping to all fours. _I have to get out of here. _I watched, stiff with terror as its tongue flicked over its white mask. _I have to run…RUN! _Turning, I sprinted towards the stairs to my apartment. Suddenly, white-hot pain burned on my back. Falling, I skidded to a stop next to several garbage cans. Gingerly, I tried to get up, before noticing the wetness on my back. Stretching my arm, I touched it. Bringing my hand back into the light, I saw that it was stained with red. All of a sudden, I felt faint. I was bleeding.

"Hungry…" It was standing up now, with four sharp claws extending from its left fist. They were dripping with my blood. A sharp twinge of pain on my back soon turned into a throbbing, burning sensation, each wave making it hard to move. But I had to get up. I had to escape. Gritting my teeth against the agony, I slowly pushed myself to my feet, clutching at the bins for support. "Ow…" I whimpered, tears springing to my eyes. I glanced at the thing. It was on all fours again, getting ready to pounce. The knuckles of my fingers were white; it was already taking all my power just to stay upright. There was no way I could run. Just as it leapt, I saw a blue flash out of the corner of my eye.

"Nagi!" The Hollow reeled back in pain, a long thin gash appearing on its chest.

"Grimmjow?" He stood between the Hollow and me, Zanpakuto resting on his shoulder.

"You all right?" he glanced at me, then at the Hollow, jaw clenching. _Is he angry?_

"I'm fine." I replied, gritting my teeth together. I wasn't such a wuss that I would go crying to Grimmjow. But my resolve was upstaged by my wobbly legs.

He grabbed my arm to keep me steady. "You humans are so damn fragile."

"Sorry." I muttered. "But…" I blinked, trying to focus. "How can you attack…Gigai…makes you weaker."

"I'm still strong enough to take down small fry like that." He jerked his thumb to the Hollow. "But he ain't down yet." The Hollow had begun to growl, enraged by Grimmjows interference.

"Oh." My vision blurred and darkened for a second.

Grimmjow frowned. "We should get you to Orihime." Stabbing his Zanpakuto into the ground, he knelt down, his back facing me. "Get on."

"But, you can't…fight…like that." I protested weakly.

"Shit, Nagi." Grimmjow snapped. "Just shut up and do what I say."

"But…" I began to complain, but then reconsidered. I didn't really want to die just yet. "Ok." Releasing my hold on the bins, I collapsed against his back. The Hollow prepared to spring again. _Don't die, Grimmjow. _I didn't have enough strength to talk anymore. My vision turned dark again.

* * *

It was so warm, so soft. _Where am I? _I wondered. _Heaven? Soul Society?_ I opened my eyes. The air above me was covered by a thin orange film that glowed. I could see Orihime's face on the other side. Slowly I reached out a hand, wondering if I could reach beyond the orange barrier. Suddenly it disappeared.

"Nagi!" Orihime wrapped her arms around me, hugging me tightly. "I was so worried! Thank god Grimmjow made it in time, thank god." She sobbed.

"Oh. Uh, it's ok." I patted her back awkwardly. "I'm alright now. Thank you." I turned to Grimmjow, who was sitting against the wall, arm resting on his knee. "Uh, thanks. For…saving me." it felt awkward to use the word 'save'. It didn't seem like something Grimmjow would do.

He looked away. "Tch. You're such a pain, makin' me do all this."

"Sorry." I guiltily looked at the floor.

"You owe me one."

"Ok. Um, what happened to the, uh, the body?"

"Dumped it somewhere."

I winced inwardly. I didn't particularly like that idea of the poor boy's body just lying somewhere, waiting to be found, but I had to admit, it was a better option than just leaving it in the middle of the street.

"Then, what about the Hollow?"

He snorted. "I killed it of course. Wasn't even fun. Maybe I should've just fought it in my Gigai."

Suddenly I noticed he was in his spiritual form. "Hey, where's your Gigai?"

"Oh, that." He shrugged nonchalantly. "Got a couple of scratches here and there, so I left it at that shitty Shinigami's place for him to repair."

"Oh." Guiltily, I looked down again. _It's all my fault. _"Sorry."

"Alright." Standing up, he stretched. "Now that you're healed, let's go home." He strode over to the door. Hurriedly, I scrambled up and followed him.

"Bye, Orihime!"

"Bye! Be careful!" She called back anxiously.

When we were outside, Grimmjow looked at me. "Hey."

I started. I was still feeling slightly dejected. "Yes?"

"How're we gonna get home? It's late, it's dark and I'm tired."

"We walk of course. It's not like we have any other option. Sorry."

He was silent for a moment. "Hey, I think I know a shortcut."

"Really?" I frowned. I was pretty sure I would know if there was a shortcut or not.

Not replying, he simply threw me over his shoulder and leapt up into the sky.

"OOHH MYYYY GOODDDD!" I screamed, head spinning as I watched Orihime's house become smaller and smaller. I squeezed my eyes shut. Fisting my hands in his jacket in order to keep myself from falling off, I heard him laugh. He was enjoying it. We moved through the sky with superhuman speed, so much, that the trip to our apartment, which usually took around half an hour on foot, took just ten seconds.

Still grinning, he set me down in front of the door to our apartment. "How's that?"

"Worst…shortcut…ever." I gasped, still somewhat dizzy. But once my vision stopped spinning, I realized I felt better. I felt clean and refreshed, and happier too. Unlocking the door, I trotted into our apartment with Grimmjow close behind. Flicking on the lights, I squinted at the clock as Grimmjow flopped onto the couch, turning on the T.V. It was already 10:00. _Should I do some homework before I sleep? _ I shook my head. _Too tired. _I glanced at Grimmjow, whose eyes were glued to the screen.

"Hey, I'm going to sleep now."

"Hmmm. Ok."

Closing the door behind me with a click, I stood there, brow furrowed. Too much had happened and I needed time to think. Mostly about Grimmjow. Crawling onto my bed, I sat in my thinking position, my knees pulled up to my chest. Lately, Grimmjow had become weirdly…normal. He hadn't talked about killing people had even seemed concerned about my well-being. Which was a far cry from his attitude when he first came here. _Could it be I misjudged him? Or maybe he's just adapting better than I thought. _I rubbed my forehead. _Whatever. Maybe I'm just thinking too hard. _I could feel my brain beginning to sizzle. _He still does want to fight after all._

* * *

I stared at the blackboard, bored out of my mind. Yawning, I saw a flash of blue and white outside the window. _Clouds and sky?_ I turned my head to get a better look. _Oh, it's just Grimmjow. _I turned back to the blackboard. _WAIT. _I did a double take. _IT'S GRIMMJOW!_ He grinned at me, standing on thin air.

"Teacher." I frantically put up my hand and waved it around.

Sighing, he turned around. "Yes, what is it Kawada?"

"Um, sir. Can I go to the washroom?"

He sighed again. "Fine, go." I hurriedly exited the classroom, making a beeline for the school rooftop. I knew he would follow me.

"Yo, why'd you leave?" he gracefully hopped down from the fence.

"Because I saw YOU." I pointed accusingly at him.

"Well," he raised an eyebrow. "I'm flattered."

"That was NOT a compliment!" I snapped. "Why are you here?"

He shrugged, leaning against the fence with his arms crossed over his chest. "Dunno. Just felt like comin' over to see what you do at school everyday."

I rolled my eyes. "You're just here to pick a fight with Kurosaki aren't you?"

He grinned. "Heh, you got me."

"Well too bad." I smirked triumphantly. "He's not here today. He's at home, sick."

"Are you for real? Shit." He sagged against the fence with a disappointed expression. "Now what do I do?"

"Uh, go home?"

He glanced at me. "I don't wanna. I think I'll stick around, seein' as I'm already here."

"What?" I cried, dismayed. "You can't!"

"I can and I will" he retorted stubbornly.

"Urgh." I muttered to myself. There was no convincing him when he got like that. "Fine." I sighed relenting. "Just don't destroy the school or hurt anyone."

"Boriinnggg." He drawled, but shut up when I glared at him.

* * *

Being on edge the whole time he was in the school, I finally relaxed when it was time to go home. I thanked the gods for the miracle they bestowed on me. Grimmjow had been exceptionally good. I had expected worse, but he had only pushed two people down the stairs and destroyed three desks. Thankfully, the two people weren't seriously injured and the desks were only spares. Worn out, I plodded along the street with Grimmjow beside me.

"Meow." Stopping abruptly, I looked down. There was a tiny gray kitten in a cardboard box, staring up at us with its huge blue eyes.

"Meow."

My heart melted. "Awww…." I bent down to take a better look. "What are you doing here, kitty?" I stroked its head with a finger. It purred. Shifting back a little, I read the writing on the box. "'Please take me home.' Awww…" Carefully, I picked it up, ready to put it back down if it didn't like it. But it just hung there, blinking its huge eyes at me. "Well, I think I'll take you home then. What do you think, Grimmjow?"

He was frowning. "No."

"What? Why?"

"'Cos I said so."

"Well, I say we're keeping…" I checked under its tail. "Him."

His frown deepened. "We are not."

"We are so."

"We are not."

"We are so." This was something I was not going to back down on.

"We're not!" he snapped angrily. "Do you even know how to take care of that thing?"

"It's not a 'thing'!" I snapped back. "It's called a cat! And I do know how to take care of it!" We both glared at each other, neither willing to back down.

Grimmjows eyes narrowed further. "Have you forgotten just how much you owe me?"

Flinching, I looked down at the ground. It was true. I owed him my life. "I know, but, we can't just leave him here. What if he dies?"

"No he won't. Someone else will take him."

"What if they don't?"

He shrugged. "Well then, bad luck I guess."

I glared harder at him. He glared back. "Grimmjow is an idiot!" I yelled as I dashed of in the direction of Orihime's apartment with the kitten, leaving him standing next to the empty cardboard box.


	9. Chapter 9

BLEACH – Into a New World

Hi guys~~

It's been a while since my last update, but to be honest, I haven't had much inspiration lately.

As always, explanations will be at the end. Enjoy!

DISCLAIMER: Bleach belongs to Tite Kubo.

* * *

Chapter 9: Little Kitty Troubles

"Oh, Nagi." Orihime patted my back sympathetically. "Grimmjow's being very stubborn isn't he?"

Sulkily, I nodded. I was sitting, cross-legged at the low table in Orihime's apartment where I had escaped to. "It's not like he's allergic to cats. And he's such a good cat." I glanced at the kitten who sat there docilely; lapping up the milk Orihime had set out for him. Hearing my voice, he looked up, blinked twice and returned to his milk. Cats really were adorable. Sighing, we sat there gloomily.

"Oh! I have an idea!" Orihime straightened up excitedly. "Well, it really isn't much of an idea, but how about we leave the kitten here, with me for now, so you can compromise with Grimmjow? At least this way, he won't be on the streets anymore."

"Orihime, you're the best!" I hugged her gratefully. "What would I do without you?"

Giggling, she waved away my compliment. "What are friends for?"

"But," I slumped down again. "I don't really want to go home right now. I know I'll just get angry when I see his face."

"Well, you can stay here if you want." She offered.

"Really?"

"Of course! Are you hungry? I'll make you something to eat!"

I flinched. "Oh, thanks, but actually…I think I'll go home."

She stared at me, puzzled. "Really? Are you sure?"

"Uh, yeah, I'm sure." I stood up. "I have to, uh, face him sooner or later."

She beamed at me. "That's the spirit, Nagi!"

I gave her a small smile, slightly guilty about my small lie. But let's be honest here, there was NO ONE who could swallow her cooking.

* * *

When I got home, he was already there, lounging on the couch, watching T.V. I glared at him as I took off my shoes. _Stupid Grimmjow. _I glanced at the clock. It was already 5:00. I had to make dinner. Starving him might be a little too much. Half an hour later, I was done. Setting it down with a bang in front of him, I took my tray into my room and shut the door firmly. Taking a few mouthfuls of rice, I sighed, setting down my chopsticks. I had no appetite. I heard the front door open, then close. _So he left huh? Good riddance! _He had no heart. He didn't seriously expect me to leave a kitten on the streets, did he? Angrily, I pushed my tray to the side. _Stupid Grimmjow._ I opened up my math textbook. I needed to concentrate on something else. An hour later, he was back. Without even knocking, he pushed open the door to my room and walked in.

"Yo, Nagi."

"Hmph." Ignoring him, I bent my head lower over my homework.

"I got my Gigai back." Still, I ignored him.

"Meow."

I whipped my head around to see Grimmjow holding the kitten by the scruff of his neck.

"The cat!" I stared, slack jawed, as Grimmjow dropped it into my lap and turned to leave. "Wait, why did you bring him back?" I asked, utterly confused. "Weren't you extremely against it?"

He glared at me over his shoulder. "Well what else was I supposed to do? You were tryin' to poison me!"

"What?" I spluttered. "I would never-"

He jerked his chin at the tray that still sat on my table. It was only then; I realized how similar it looked to Orihime's cooking. No wonder I had no appetite. I guiltily glanced at Grimmjow.

"Sorry." I muttered.

He grunted. "Should be."

Meekly, I followed him into the living room. "Um, if you want, I'll get you something else to eat."

He grunted again, flopping onto the couch. "Do whatever you want. Just make it fast."

I hesitated. "Then, is pizza ok?"

"Yeah."

Dialing the number into the phone, I peeked behind to see that the kitten had curled up comfortably on Grimmjows lap as he frowned. But gradually his expression softened. They were, after all, pretty similar. Hanging up after placing the order, I slid into a chair, propping my elbows on the table.

"Hey Grimmjow, what should we name him?"

"Hmmm. How about 'Grimmjow' after me?" he grinned delightedly at the idea.

"Rejected."

"What? Why?"

"Too confusing. Unless we go 'Grimmjow A' and Grimmjow B'. I, personally think we should give him a cute name."

"Like what?"

"Like…Coco maybe?"

"Bleh. No way."

"Then what?"

"We could name him 'Dog'." He laughed at his own joke. "A cat named 'Dog'…I'm a genius."

The corner of my lips twitched. It was so lame, it was funny. "How about something like Mitty?"

"Hell no. I think 'Grimmjow's-Minion-who-is-the-Ultimate-Conqueror-of-all-Beasts' would be good. "

I rolled my eyes. "Are you serious? Then we might as well call him 'Jugemu-Jugemu-Gokou-no-Surikire-Kaijarisuigyo-no-Suigyoumatsu-Unraimatsu-Fuuraimatsu-Kuunerutokoro-ni-Sumutokoro-Yaburakouji-no-Burakouji-Paipopaipo-Paipo-no-Shuuringan-Shuuringan-no-Guurindai-Guurindai-no-Ponpokopii-no-Ponpokonaa-no-Choukyuumei-no-Chousuke'."

There was a long silence before he managed to splutter, "What the hell is that?"

"It's just a name."

"What kind of name is that?"

"A name from an old Japanese folktale."

"Urgh," he grimaced. "Whatever. Let's just stick with short names."

I shrugged. "Sure. So what do you suggest?"

"I wanna give him a cool name, like 'Pantera', after my Resurrection."

I tilted my head to one side, thinking. I wasn't entirely happy with that name, but it was better than his other suggestions. Besides, he DID go back for the kitten so I supposed it was only fair that he got the last call.

"Alright, I guess that'll do."

He raised his blue eyebrows unbelievingly. "You serious? I thought you'd be more stubborn."

I shrugged again. "Eh, well this isn't really worth being stubborn over. 'Pantera' isn't so bad either."

He stared at me oddly, but before he could say anything else, the doorbell rang.

"Pizza delivery!" a voice outside called.

"Coming!" I jumped up from my chair. "Don't look at me like that." I told Grimmjow. "I'm not that selfish and stubborn you know."

* * *

"Mmmm…" I frowned slightly, still snuggled in my soft bed. I could hear the birds chirping outside my window, and there was a weight on my chest. Something wet touched my cheek. Cracking open an eyelid, I found myself staring into a pair of blue eyes. _Blue eyes…Grimmjow? No. _It was Pantera, crouched on my chest, his nose a mere inch away from mine. Stretching out his paw, he smacked me on the nose.

"Ow." I winced. Glancing at the clock on my bedside table, I groaned. "It's only 8:00…" I muttered. Yowling, he smacked me again.

"Ow!" I flinched. "What, are you hungry?"

"Meow."

"Fine, fine, I'm up. You know, usually you'd be more respectful to someone who saved you…" Grumbling, I slipped my legs off my bed and slid my feet into my slippers. Or what was left of them. "Pantera!" My slippers had been ripped to shreds. "Ugh." I glared at him. "Why does everything I pick up off the streets end up destroying my things?" I muttered as I picked them up, cringing at the damage. "First the chair, now my slippers…" I sighed, shuffling out of my room. "We need to do something about your claws…" Padding into the kitchen, I grabbed a shallow bowl, filling it with milk and placing it on the floor for Pantera. "And I need to take you to the vet…" I popped two slices of bread into the toaster and poured a cup of orange juice while I waited. "Buy you a scratching post…" I grabbed a tub of margarine and a jar of jam out of the fridge. "Get you a collar…" Sighing, I put the toasted bread onto a plate and carried it over to the table. "So much to do…"

Grimmjow wandered into the kitchen, yawning.

"Morning Grimmjow." I munched on my toast and skimmed through the newspaper.

He just grunted, eyes still half closed. He really wasn't a morning person.

"Hey, I'm taking Pantera to the vet later so you can just do whatever you want, ok?"

He grunted again. Washing down the rest of my breakfast with orange juice, I stood. The vet was only open until midday on Saturdays, so I had to hurry.

* * *

"See, that wasn't so bad now, was it?" I murmured to Pantera as we came out of the clinic. "We even managed to get a nice blue collar for you." Sulkily, he stuck his nose in the oposite direction. I snorted. "So ungrateful. Just like Grimmjow."

"Nagi?"

Turning, I spotted Keiko just a little way off. "Keiko! What are you doing?"

"I'm just doing a bit of shopping." Then she noticed the bundle of gray fur in my arms.

"Nagi! Is that a cat?"

"Um, yeah."

"Since when did you have a cat?"

"Uh, since…yesterday?"

"What? Seriously? You never told me anything about getting a cat!"

"Well, I found it abandoned on the side of the street, so it was kind of a spontaneous decision."

"Oh wow…" she muttered bending lower to look at Pantera. "What's she called?"

"Pantera. And it's a he."

"Pantera?" She raised a skeptical eyebrow. "That's a really weird name. Cool, but weird."

"Yeah well," I sighed resignedly, "that's what Grimmjow wanted."

Her mouth formed an 'O' shape. "I swear, you guys are like a married couple."

"What?" I almost dropped Pantera. "No!"

She wiggled her eyebrows. "Oh really? Well, we'll see about that." Laughing, she skipped away, waving.

I smacked my forehead with my palm. "How embarrassing…" I mumbled, face burning.

* * *

"I'm back!" I called as I shut the door behind me. Bending down, I freed the squirming cat from my grasp.

Grimmjow poked his head out from the kitchen. "Yo, Nagi-"

"Hang on Grimmjow, just give me a minute to unpack Pantera's things." I interrupted, bustling past him, into the kitchen. "And I think he's hungry, so can you open up a can of cat food?"

Muttering under his breath, he grabbed the tin and stalked over to Pantera's bowl. "Ok, so-"

"Wait, don't use that that one anymore, use the new one I just bought." I pointed at the shiny new blue bowl. "He liked that one when I took him to the store."

Slowly, he walked back and picked it up.

"Don't forget to wash it, just in case it has chemicals. I don't want him to get sick."

Moments later, I heard the tap water running. "Nagi-"

"Not now, Grimmjow, I'm setting up Pantera's scratching post."

Suddenly there was a crash. "Shit Nagi!" Jolting, I looked up towards the kitchen where Grimmjow was standing, fists clenched, eyes blazing. The bowl was spinning to a stop on the floor.

"W-what?" I stammered, eyes wide.

"You're askin' ME 'what?'" He smashed his fist down on the table, making me flinch. "'Pantera needs this', 'Pantera wants that', 'Pantera, Pantera, Pantera.' That's ALL you've cared about ever since we got the shitty cat!" He spat. "Well, I'm outta this shithole, you can just stay here and take care of your shitty 'Little Pantera.'" Shoving me out of the way, he strode out of the apartment, slamming the door behind him. I stared at the front door.

"Well. That was sudden." I said to the empty room.

* * *

**Jugemu-Jugemu-etc, etc - **This is actually something from an old Japanese folktale. It's also been used in the FMA special episodes and Gintama. If you want to find out more, just type "Jugemu" into google.


	10. Chapter 10

BLEACH – Into a New World

Hi Guys! So, new chapter. YAY!

So. I have a question. You know when you upload stories, they have their own "lifespan". Does that mean that when it expires people can't read it anymore? And I have to re-upload it again?

Sorry, but I'm a noob at this stuff. X_X

I would really appreciate it if anybody could explain : )

Anyways, ENJOY!

DISCLAIMER: Story and characters(except for Nagi, Keiko, Ayame and now Pantera.) belong to Tite Kubo~

* * *

Chapter 10: Big Kitty Troubles

"What?" Both Ayame and Keiko gaped at me, eyes popping out of their sockets. "So you're saying that you guys got into an argument yesterday and he left and hasn't been back since?"

"Mmm, buh doan wowwy." I mumbled with my mouth full. I swallowed before I spoke again. "He'll come back when he gets hungry."

They looked skeptically at me. "Aren't you worried?"

I lowered my sandwich. "Well, I guess I'm a little worried. But there's not much I can do when he gets like that."

Ayame frowned. "Have you tried looking for him?"

"Well, no."

"Why not?"

I sighed. "Because I don't know whether he wants to be found or not. I don't even know why he ran off in the first place."

She crossed her arms. "Well I still think you should look for him. After all, he's helped you out so many times before so this is the least you can do for him."

"Hmmm." It was true. He had helped me out many times before, and I did owe him. But I wasn't sure if he would appreciate my initiative. Just then, Keiko spotted Orihime in the corridor.

"Orihime!" she called, waving. "Come here! Someone here needs your wisdom."

"Oh?" She trotted over.

"This girl here had a fight with Grimmjow and so he ran away, but she hasn't even tried to look for him. Tell her she should." Keiko jerked her thumb at me.

Grabbing a chair, Orihime sat down and stared intently at me. "What was the fight about?"

"Well-" I began, but I was pushed aside by Ayame.

"Let me explain. Grimmjow and Nagi had a fight over their cat, Pantera. It seems that Grimmjow was unhappy about the amount of attention she was paying to Pantera and the lack of attention she was paying to him. In short, he was jealous."

"What? He wasn't jealous. Why would he be jealous?" I was confused.

"Nagi, you do know what kind of person Grimmjow is, right?" Orihime asked me.

"Of course!" I replied. "He's an egotistical, ungrateful, rude show-off."

"A-ha!" Orihime pointed at me. "'Show-off'. That's the key word there. It means he always wants to be in the center of attention." She looked hard at me. "It means he wants YOUR attention Nagi."

"Eh…" I fiddled with my sandwich wrapper. But I had to admit, it DID make more sense. Finally, I sighed reluctantly. "Fine, I'll see what I can do. But where should I start? I don't even know where he went."

"Just give him a call." Keiko leaned forward. "He does have a cell phone, right?"

"He doesn't."

"WHAT?" Keiko recoiled in horror. "This is the 21st century! Who doesn't have a cell phone in the 21st century?"

"Uh…" I looked at Orihime helplessly. Seeing my SOS, she quickly stepped in.

"O-oh, Nagi, didn't you say his cell phone broke before?"

"Yes! Yes, he doesn't have one because his last one broke."

"Oh." Keiko seemed relieved. _Is the idea of not having a cell phone that horrible?_ "You should get him another one, so that if something like this happens again, you can contact him."

I sighed. _More money…_"Ok, I'll get one after school today. But what should I do for now?"

"Why don't you go to Mr. Urahara?" Orihime suggested. "He's good with this type of stuff."

"Alright then. I'll go tomorrow."

"Go today." The three of them looked at me sternly.

"O-ok…" _SCARY._

* * *

"Mr. Urahara." I hesitantly called as I peeked into the dim interior of his shop.

"Oh, it's Nagi!" He called cheerfully, head poking out from behind the sliding doors. "How can I help you?"

I rubbed the back of my neck, embarrassed. "Uh, well, Grimmjow ran away yesterday and-"

"Oh, if you're looking for Grimmjow, he's in the basement, training."

"Huh?"

"He's in the basement, training with Kurosaki."

"O-oh…" That was unexpected. I didn't think he'd be that easy to find. But it didn't mean that he was going to be easy to talk to. "Um, Mr. Urahara, can I go down there? I need to talk to him."

He closed his fan with a loud snapping sound. "Of course. Follow me."

* * *

I could hear the clashing of their blades even before I entered the basement. When I did enter, I could see the two, suspended in mid-air, panting laboriously.

"Grimmjow!" Mr. Urahara waved his cane around. "You have a visitor!"

Lowering his Zanpakuto, he glanced over his shoulder to see who the visitor was. When he realized it was me, his expression changed into a mixture of irritation and sulkiness.

"What do YOU want?" He muttered, descending. "Don't you have to look after your 'Little Pantera'?"

Nervously, I fingered the buttons on my school blazer. Taking a deep breath, I looked straight into his eyes. "Grimmjow, can I talk to you for a second?"

"Tch." He scuffed at the dirt with his sandals. "Fine." He turned to yell at Kurosaki. "Oi, Kurosaki, we're takin' a break." He hopped up to sit on top of a large boulder. "So?" he sneered down at me.

Suddenly I didn't feel like apologizing nicely like Orihime suggested. What right did he have to turn his stupid nose up at me like that even though I came all the way to apologize? Why did I even need to apologize anyway? I hadn't done anything wrong. I was furious.

"Don't look down on me like that! Do you think you're a king or something?"

"Ha!" He barked. "I don't THINK I'm the damn king, I AM the damn king!"

"Oho, You're being funny today, Your Highness!" I shot back, my voice laden with sarcasm. "Just what is your problem?"

"My problem?" He leapt down from the boulder. "My damn problem is YOU, you shithead!"

"Why the heck am I the problem?" I screamed, infuriated. I took a step closer. "Why am I the problem when all you've done is leech off me?"

"You're the problem 'cos your head is filled with shit! And what did you come here for anyway? Why don't you just go back to your 'Little Pantera'?" He shouted back, taking a step as well.

"What's Pantera got to do with this, huh? Why do you have a grudge against a CAT?" I yelled, face turning red.

"I don't have a grudge against the shitty CAT, I have a grudge against YOU for pickin' up the damn thing!" He hollered, a vein pulsing in his forehead.

"What?" I threw up my hands in frustration. "That doesn't even make any sense!"

"It makes PLENTY sense! You shit-for-brains person!"

"WHAT?" I screeched. "S-shit-for-brains? Have you got your head screwed on right? You freeloader! What's so wrong about me picking up a cat?"

"It's not pickin' up the cat that's annoyin', it's how you act after picking it up that's annoyin'! 'Grimmjow, Pantera needs this,' 'Grimmjow, Pantera wants that,'" He mimicked. "It's pissin' the hell out of me! " Straightening, he crossed his arms. "I don't like the idea of sharin' yo-the apartment with some damn feline!"

I was silent for a moment. Now that I thought about it, it did seem like I was pushing Grimmjow aside. I felt a twinge of guilt. _I never realized Grimmjow was such a sensitive person._

"Look," I sighed, rubbing my forehead. "I didn't come here to fight, I came to ask when and if you're coming back. If you're worried about Pantera, don't worry anymore. Now that you've told me what's bothering you, I can fix it. So are you going to come back?"

"Really?" He squinted at me, searching my face for any signs of lying. Finding none, he huffed. "Well, since you begged, I s'pose I'll have to come back."

"Huh." I muttered to myself. _Since when did I beg?_

"Nagi, hurry up!" He was already halfway out.

"Yeah, coming!" I called back. _Looks like someone's eager to go home._

* * *

Crouching, Grimmjow stared at Pantera. "Now listen here, cat. Don't get in my way. If you do, I'll crush you." He jabbed a finger at the feline. "Got that?"

"Meow."

"Good."

I rolled my eyes. _Isn't he overreacting a little?_ "Oh yeah." Suddenly remembering, I dug in my pocket and held out a rectangular object to Grimmjow.

"What's this?" He asked, taking it.

"Cell phone. So you can contact me if something happens."

"Oh?" He turned it around in his hands.

"You've played enough with mine to know how it works, so I thought it was about time you got your own."

"Where's the charger?" He asked.

"In your room."

"My room?" he raised his eyebrows. "What room?"

"Well, I thought that since you weren't going to go anytime soon, you might as well have a room of your own. So I cleaned out the storage room and moved some stuff in. Like a futon, table, drawers."

"Oh?" His face brightened. He darted towards the old storage room. Coughing to hide my smile, I followed him. "Huh. Not bad." He muttered, but I could tell he was very pleased. He was so adorable sometimes. _Wait. Adorable?_ I violently shook my head. _No! I meant appalling. Appalling. Same difference. _

I cleared my throat. "So, you like it?"

"Well." He paused. "Yeah. Yeah, I guess I do."

"Alright then." I turned to go. "I guess I'll start on dinner."

"Oi."

"What?" I turned back.

Coughing into his fist, he turned away slightly. "…ks."

"What?" I leaned forward. "What did you say? I couldn't hear. Speak louder."

Shooting me a glare, he cleared his throat. "I said…" His voice turned quiet again. "…nks."

"Huh?" I strained my ears. "It stinks? I thought I'd aired it out pretty well."

"That's not what I said!"

"Then speak louder!"

He glanced at me before turning his face away. "I said…I said thanks." Without waiting for my reply, he quickly entered his new room and shut the door in my face. Not that there was any rush. It took me a quite some time to process what he had just said.

"Oh." My mouth hung open after the processing completed. "Oh." Grimmjow had actually _thanked_ me for something. Still dazed, I wandered into the kitchen. Grimmjow had always acted like everything I did was to be expected, which made it especially significant when he thanked me. Grinning uncontrollably, I began to prepare for dinner.

After all, it wasn't every day you get thanked by someone as arrogant as Grimmjow.

* * *

**Futon **- Basically a bed with no mattress or frame. Really good for small houses because you can store it and take it out easily. But I'm sure you all know that already : )


	11. Chapter 11

BLEACH – Into a New World

Hey guys~~ It's been a week, hasn't it?

Anyways...*sigh* Speaking of holidays, mine's is almost over, and I haven't done any of my holiday homework...

*sigh* As usual, I've left it all to the last 4 days... I really want to cry.

So! Anyway, please disregard my personal gloominess and enjoy this latest chapter!

DISCLAIMER: Bleach belongs to Tite Kubo, I just own a couple of OC's here and there...

* * *

Chapter 11: A Day at the Theme Park!

"Hello?" I drowsily muttered into the receiver.

"Hello? Nagi? This is Ayame."

"Ayame?" I squinted at the clock on my bedside table. "It's 8 in the morning. This had better be important."

"I'll be fast. So the holidays have just started, right?"

"Right."

"And I'm going to America next week and Keiko's going to Hokkaido the week after, right?"

"Right."

"But we haven't been out together yet, right?"

"Right. Ayame, you said you'd be fast."

"Alright, alright. My point is, why don't we all go to the theme park today?"

"Theme park?" I frowned, eyes still closed. "Aren't they expensive?"

"I knew you'd say that." There was a sigh. "But luckily I prepared something to counter that!"

"What did you prepare?"

"I have four 'free entry' passes!"

"Where'd you get that?" Rubbing my eyes, I sat up.

"I won them at a lottery!"

"Oh, ok. What are we going to do with the fourth pass? Orihime is working today."

"Well, we give it to Grimmjow, of course!"

"…"

"Nagi? Hello? Are you there?"

"Fine."

"Oh." She sounded surprised. "I thought you'd complain more."

"I've given up on complaining."

"Does that mean you're coming?"

"Yeah, I guess." I stifled a yawn. "When should we meet up?"

"How about 10?"

"Alright, see you then."

* * *

"Nagi. What are you wearing?" Ayame stared at me in dismay while Keiko shook her head sadly.

"Uh, jeans and T-shirt?" I looked at their expressions. "What?"

Sighing, they pulled me aside. "Nagi!" Ayame shook her fist at me. "How could you be wearing jeans and a T-shirt? Why couldn't have you worn something prettier? Like a skirt maybe?"

"How can I go on the rollercoaster in a skirt?"

" Fine, fine, we know how much you like rollercoasters. But what about a nice pair of shorts?"

"Bike shorts?"

"No, short shorts!"

"I don't have any."

Ayame smacked her forehead in frustration. Sighing, Keiko patted her back calmingly. "Don't worry so much, Ayame, she's just a late bloomer. Just wait and see."

"But we can't wait!" Ayame wailed. "I THOUGHT it was weird that Grimmjow hadn't made a move on Nagi, even though they live together." She looked dismally at me, in my jeans and T-shirt. "Now I know why." Lunging forward, she grabbed my shoulders, giving me a good shake. "Nagi, if this continues, you'll never get yourself a boyfriend!" Falling back, she and Keiko clutched each other.

"Our little Nagi…" Keiko sniffed.

"She'll be forever alone…" Ayame buried her face in her hands.

I chuckled. "Ok, ok, I got it."

"Really?" they looked at me with suspicion.

"No, but seeing as we're just outside the theme park, can't we give it a rest for today?"

Sighing, they relented. "Fine."

* * *

"Oh! Oh!" Ayame excitedly pointed at the Haunted House. "Let's go in there!"

"What about the rollercoasters?" I asked.

"I think we've had enough of rollercoasters." At my insistence, we went on all of the 4 different rollercoasters in the theme park. Twice. Grabbing my arm, she dragged me towards the Haunted House.

"Listen," she hissed quietly, "at every chance you get, grab onto Grimmjow and pretend to be scared."

"Huh? But wh-" but she shoved me inside before I could finish. Grimmjow followed soon after.

"What's with your friends?" he grumbled as he scowled back at the entrance.

"Not sure." I replied. _And why do I have to cling to Grimmjow like Ayame told me to? That's just stupid. This isn't a Shoujo manga. I won't do it. I'm not even scared of this kind of stuff anyway. _I pouted rebelliously.

"Hey." I nudged Grimmjow. "Let's go."

I hadn't even gone 5 steps before a bloody mannequin popped out from behind a curtain, accompanied by a bloodcurdling scream. I flinched, moving back half a step. _Well, that was…sudden. Not scary, sudden. _Pulling myself together, I begun to walk faster. _I should probably get out of here A.S.A.P. _Suddenly there was a loud bang and crash and another blood soaked mannequin dropped down from the ceiling. I couldn't help but let out a small squeak, stumbling backwards.

"Heh, you scared?" I looked up behind me to see Grimmjow grinning at me, his teeth glinting in the darkness.

"No." I took a deep breath. "No, I was just surprised. That's all." _I think I'm going to have a heart attack._

"Suurreee." He drawled, walking past me. Unwilling to be left behind, I quickly scampered after him, grabbing his sleeve. Surprised, he looked down at me. Then he smirked. "So you ARE scared."

"No!" I shot back. "This is so you don't get lost."

"Suurreee." He drawled again.

Suddenly, I felt something brush my cheek. Jerking sideways, I lost my grip on Grimmjows sleeve. Frantically, I flailed my arms around in the darkness. "Grimmjow? Grimmjow?" I was beginning to panic. "Grimmjow, where are you?"

"Boo." Someone whispered behind me.

"GYYAAAAAHHHHHH!" Screaming at the top of my lungs, I clapped my hands over my ears and made a dash for the exit. Bursting through the doors, I stumbled and fell to my knees, panting.

"Nagi? Nagi? What's wrong?" Keiko and Ayame knelt down beside me anxiously. "Where's Grimmjow?"

Moments after the question left her lips, we heard laughing. Looking back cautiously, I saw Grimmjow leaning on the doorframe, clutching his stomach, laughing his ass off. My eyes narrowed. "It was you wasn't it? The one who scared me so badly!"

"Man," he choked, "your reaction…priceless…"

"That wasn't funny!" I snapped. _That stupid Grimmjow! I swear, one day I'm going to get my revenge! _Still boiling, I turned my head away. "Hmph!" All of a sudden, my gaze landed on a clown, who was handing out helium balloons to young children. My lips twitched. _Looks like I don't have to wait for my revenge._

Walking purposefully towards the clown, I held out my hand. "Can I have a balloons please?" After a moment of hesitation, he handed me a blue balloon with a yellow string. Jogging back to rejoin the rest, I ripped off the string, and unknotted the neck of the balloon.

Grimmjow peered at what I was doing curiously. "Yo, Nagi, what's that?"

"It's a snack." I replied, smiling innocently at him. I saw Keiko and Ayame's eyes widen with surprise, but thankfully, they didn't say anything.

"Really?" Grimmjow was unconvinced. "It looks weird. How do you eat it?"

"Well," I faked a sigh. "I wasn't going to give you any since you were so mean back there." I pretended to sulk.

"C'mon, Nagi, it was all good fun." He grinned. "No harm done, yeah?"

"I guess." I huffed. _Really now? 'No harm done'? I almost got a heart attack._

"So how do you eat it?"

"Well, you see this hole?"

"Yeah?"

"Basically, you just put that in your mouth and take one big gulp from there." I held it out to him. "Try it, but make sure that if it's not in your mouth, the hole must be closed."

I watched with growing excitement as he followed my instructions. Soon, the balloon was completely deflated.

"So?" I asked eagerly. "How was it?"

"It's weird." He replied. Then his eyes grew large and he clutched at his throat. "W-what the-?" He spun around to face me. "Nagi, you bitch!" he growled, or rather, squeaked. "What the hell did you do to me!"

"Oh, it was just a little joke." I replied amicably. "It was all good fun, no harm done, right?" I stared at him hard. Crossing his arms, he looked away, sullen. Satisfied with my revenge, I turned to leave. "Don't worry, it's not permanent, it'll wear off soon."

He glared at me, but didn't dare open his mouth.

* * *

"Oh, Nagi! Nagi!" Ayame was standing outside a tent, impatiently beckoning to me.

"What?" I wandered over, interested.

"Look!" she pointed at the sign. "Fortune telling! Let's go in!"

"But I don't really…" Despite my unfinished protest, I was dragged in anyway.

As my eyes adjusted to the dim interior, I realized that it wasn't completely dark, but rather, there was two scented candles sitting on either end of a small table. There was also a veiled woman sitting there staring into the crystal ball in front of her. She looked up as we entered.

"Welcome."

Nervously, I gave a small bow and sat stiffly on the small cushion that she offered us. "Huh?" I looked behind us. "Where's Grimmjow?"

"He's still sulky, so he's going to be waiting outside." Keiko told me quietly, sitting down beside me.

"So." The woman spoke again. Her voice was deep, but not so much that it was manly. It had a mysterious quality, much like the woman herself. "Which one of you wishes for your fortune to be told?"

"This one here." Ayame quickly pointed at me. "Her name's Nagi."

"Nagi…"she murmured. "It's a good name. It means 'serenity'."

"Oh." I was surprised. "I didn't know that."

The fortuneteller chuckled softly. "Now tell me: money, love, or health?"

"Mon-" but Ayame fiercely clamped her hand over my mouth.

"Love!" she gave me a stern look. "It's got to be love!"

She chuckled again. "Very well."

Leaning forward, she gazed into the crystal ball. "Hmmm." She murmured. After a couple of minutes, she looked back up at me. "I see."

"What?" Ayame leaned forward eagerly. "What do you see?"

"The road before you is difficult. There will be many events and obstacles, but they can either hinder you, or help you. It is your choice entirely."

"And?" Keiko leaned forward too.

"You must open your heart. Only then, will you find love."

"Ohhh…" Ayame and Keiko sat back down, satisfied. Ayame turned to me. "Did you hear that, Nagi?"

"Uh, yes."

"Remember that!"

"…Ok…"

* * *

Exiting the tent, we found Grimmjow squatting outside.

"Geez, what took you so long?" he complained. "I was just about to fall asleep!"

"Sorry." I apologized. "I didn't think it'd take so long." I glanced at my watch. "Wow, it's already 5:30! We really played for the whole day, huh?"

Keiko laughed. "Well, we really wanted to make the most of today since we might not get another chance, seeing as Ayame and I are going places. Did you have fun?"

I beamed at her. "Of course! Thanks for inviting us!"

Smiling, she ruffled my hair affectionately. "No problem. It's getting late though, shall we go?"

"Sure." I took a fleeting glance at the tent before we left. "I must open my heart huh?" I shook my head. _All fortunetellers say vague stuff like that. My hearts already wide open, so bring it on, whatever it is!_


	12. Chapter 12

BLEACH – Into a New World

Well. I finished this faster than I thought. THE POWER OF PROCRASTINATION!

But seriously, I should be doing homework right now. I have "sacrificed" my homework time for you guys~~ Only yoouuuu~~

I'm high on chocolate right now.

Anyways, I hope you guys enjoy this chapter! Things get a bit...You'll find out.

DISCLAIMER: I don't own Bleach~Tite Kubo owns Bleach~

* * *

Chapter 12: Is this really Grimmjow?

"Nagi! Hey, Nagi!" I looked over my shoulder to see Grimmjow jogging towards me with a happy smile on his face. Which was weird. _Did something good happen at Mr. Urahara's place?_

"What?" I eyed him warily. That smile didn't seem right.

"You going home?" he slowed to a stop in front of me.

I shook my head. "No, I have to buy some groceries first."

His grin grew wider. "Cool, I'll come too."

"Uh," I hesitated. Grimmjow seemed strange today. "I think you should go home…"

"What?" he looked at me with a distraught expression on his face. "How could I just leave a cute girl to go shopping by herself?"

_Cute girl? _He was definitely weird.

"Uh…actually…" but I didn't get to finish.

"Alright, lets go!" Grabbing my arm, he towed me in the direction of the supermarket. I frowned. _What the heck?_

* * *

_Hmmm. _I wondered. _Would it be better value for money if I buy this one or this one? _I critically surveyed the two different bags of rice.

"Um, excuse me." a soft girlish voice interrupted my thoughts.

"Ye-" Turning around, I realized she was speaking to Grimmjow, and not me.

Tilting his head slightly, Grimmjow gave her a small smile. "Yes?"

She blushed. "Um, my friend and I were wondering if you could take a picture with us?"

I stiffened and my eyes flicked up to Grimmjow's face, anticipating the scowl I knew would appear. It didn't. Instead, he gave her a wink.

"Sure. Who wouldn't want to take a picture with a pretty girl like you?"

I gaped, eyes almost popping out of their sockets.

"Thank you so much!" she squealed hopping up and down. "Here!" she shoved her cell phone at me. "Take the picture for us please."

Still dazed, I obeyed. _What in the world is going on? Am I dreaming? _Because there was just NO WAY the Grimmjow I knew would wink and smile and gladly take pictures with people while calling them 'pretty'. My eyes narrowed. This man who was standing in front of me wasn't Grimmjow, but I needed someone to confirm it for me. And I knew exactly who.

* * *

"Mr. Urahara!" I burst through the doors to his shop. "I have a question!"

Slightly startled at my manner of entry, he recovered quickly. "Oh, Nagi! Long time no see." His eyes focused on Grimmjow who was standing behind me. "I see you've already met Eli."

My brow puckered. "Eli?"

He seemed surprised. "Didn't he tell you?"

"Tell me what?"

"Grimmjow's in Soul Society with Kurosaki right now because they have some stuff to do, so I made a Gikon for Grimmjow, because it seemed like the normal ones don't work on Arrancars souls. It's just a little experiment of mine."

"Wait, what's a Gikon?"

"Oh, that's just an artificial soul that's used to keep the Gigai safe when the Shinigami has to leave it for some reason or other."

He said it so casually that it took me a full five seconds to realize the illogicality of his explanation.

"Artificial souls?" I spluttered. "You can MAKE souls?"

"Yes." He peered at me from under the rim of his hat. "What's wrong?"

After a moment of hesitation, I shook my head. "Nothing." I had to remind myself that this was Soul Society we were talking about. Anything was possible. "So, you're telling me that this," I pointed at Grimmjows body, "isn't Grimmjow, but some guy named Eli who's a Gikon."

Mr. Urahara nodded. "Correct. And you," he looked sternly at Eli/Grimmjow. "I thought I told you to tell her about the situation."

"Eh," he pulled a face. "I WAS going to tell her." He smiled charmingly in my direction. "Later."

I ignored him. "Does Grimmjow know about this?"

"No."

"You know he won't be very happy when he finds out about this."

"Eh, I'll deal with that when the time comes."

I sighed. It wasn't like I had anything to do with this anyway, so I guessed it should be fine to let Mr. Urahara figure something out.

"Anyway, can you tell me more about these artificial souls?"

"Well," Mr. Urahara snapped open his fan. "Artificial souls come in a pill which you swallow to force out your soul. Each artificial soul has their own personality as well." His eyes flicked to Eli/Grimmjow. "Eli is a bit different from normal Gikon though, he's more of a Modsoul type."

"Modsoul?"

"They're basically Gikon, but with enhanced abilities."

"So what's his'?" I jerked my thumb at a bored looking Eli.

Mr. Urahara shrugged. "To be honest, I'm not quite sure yet. I don't know much about his personality either."

I grimaced. "I do."

Mr. Urahara's eyes lit up. "You do? So what's his personality like?"

I shuddered. "Playboy."

"Ohhh…" Mr. Urahara rubbed his chin thoughtfully. "That's interesting."

"Not!" I snapped. "Change it!"

"I can't. Sorry." He chuckled insincerely.

"What?" Eli snaked an arm around my waist. "You don't like me like this?"

"Um…" I squirmed uncomfortably in his strong grip. "Not really."

"That's ok." He spun me around so that I was facing him. "I'll change for you." He gazed deep into my eyes. "And only you." It took all of my self-control to suppress the shudder that was welling up under my skin. It was just creepy to hear such cheesy lines coming out of Grimmjows mouth.

Wriggling out of his grasp, I backed away a couple of steps. "Uh, ok. Thanks."

He followed. "No, I mean it. I won't ever look at other girls again." My back came into contact with the wall. "You'll be the only one for me." He was too close.

"Hurk." _I think I'm going to be sick. _I didn't know how to deal with this Grimmjow. It was just weird and kind of creepy. _I think I like the arrogant Grimmjow better._

"Stop it!" I snapped, shoving him away roughly. I turned to Mr. Urahara. "He IS staying with you right?"

"Um, well actually…" He busied himself fiddling with his cane. I closed my eyes in despair. I knew it. He was going to stay with me. Depressed, I trudged out of the shop with Eli following close behind. "Try to find out his ability while you're at it!" Mr. Urahara called out cheerfully from behind.

"Well this is going to be fun." I muttered sarcastically.

* * *

I was studying when a chill suddenly ran down my spine. A moment later, I felt Eli's lips brush my ear. Jolting violently, I fell off my chair.

"Wh-wh-wha-WHAT THE HELL DO YOU THINK YOU'RE DOING?" I shrieked, hysterically, face beet red. _For a second I thought it was Grimmjow who did that. Geez, this is so trippy. _

Leaning casually on my table, he grinned. "Playing."

"No, you're not!" I spat, scrambling up again. "I have holiday homework to do! I'm busy! Leave me alone!" _This…feels weirder than I could ever have imagined. And he's doing it in Grimmjow's body! The nerve of him!_

"Aww, come on." He scooted past the chair I had thrust between us. "You need a break."

"No, I don't." I pushed him hard and he fell onto his backside. "And if you keep this up," I narrowed my eyes. "I will kick you."

"Come on now," He glanced up at me nervously. "You won't actually do that, will you? I mean, you're still wearing you uniform so if you kick me, I'll see your undies. You don't want that now, do you?" He looked up at me hopefully. _Ha. He's a coward. Totally opposite of Grimmjow._

"Oh." I watched as he relaxed minutely.

"Well too bad for you, because I'M WEARING SHORTS UNDERNEATH!" I yelled as my foot connected with his face. I yanked open the door and bolted all the way to Orihime's house, not even stopping to check behind me.

* * *

Panting heavily, I knocked on her door.

"So, where's this?" whirling around, I came face to face with Eli, who still had my footprint on his face.

"You followed me?" I was aghast. All that hard work, for nothing. He wasn't even breathing heavily. _Argh, stupid Grimmjows body. _I mentally shook my fist.

"Yes." He flashed me a brilliant smile.

"Nagi? Grimmjow? What are you two doing here?" I turned to see a puzzled looking Orihime standing with her hand still on the doorknob.

I grabbed her by her shoulders. "Look, Orihime, I have a BIG problem. Help me out here. This person here…" I turned to see Eli ogling at Orihime's chest. "Eli!" I barked. "Stop staring at her chest!"

Unwillingly, he pulled his eyes away from her chest to my face. "I'm not!" he protested. "I'm just…" his eyes gravitated to her chest again. "Just noticing."

Irritated, I hustled Orihime inside and shut the door in his face.

"Are you sure it's ok to leave him there?" Orihime asked anxiously.

I rolled my eyes. "I am CERTAIN it's ok." Sighing, I plopped down at her table. "So, that guy there, who looks like Grimmjow, isn't Grimmjow. He's a Modsoul called Eli. And my problem is this: he's a perv and playboy. I can't live with him."

"Oh, dear." Orihime patted my hand sympathetically.

"And do you know how weird it is to hear pick up lines coming out of Grimmjow's mouth? They're not even good pick up lines."

"Hey, that's mean."

"What?" I turned. Eli was standing behind me. "How did you get in here? I locked the door!"

He shrugged. "I walked in here."

I narrowed my eyes at him. "You know what I mean."

"But I did walk in. Through the walls."

I frowned. "Not funny."

"It's true. You want a demo?" Confidently striding forward, it looked like he was going to crash into the table. _I should stop him. He's going to hurt himself._

"Wai-" but my jaw hit th e ground as I watched him pass through, as if there was nothing there. There was a silence as both Orihime and I just stared at him in shock. "Could this be," I said slowly "your special ability?"

"Looks like it."

Mournfully, I turned to Orihime. "I think my problem just got bigger."

* * *

Drowsily, I drifted into consciousness. It was Saturday, and my bed was warm and comfortable. _Wait. What's this around my waist? _Eyes still closed, I groped around, feeling its shape and contours. I frowned. _Is this…an arm? _My eyes flew open. Slowly, dreading what I would find, I turned my head to the side.

"Morning, sunshine." I sort of knew it was going to happen, even with the door locked, but it didn't really reduce the shock I had from finding Eli in my bed.

"ELLIIII!" I shrieked, viciously shoving him off my bed. Or at least I tried to. He was too heavy and too strong. _Damn! I wish Grimmjow would hurry up and come back._

"Aw, come on Nagi, don't be so violent." He complained as I scrambled to the other end of my bed, almost squashing Pantera, who was sleeping. He leapt off my bed with a hiss.

"Violent?" I spluttered. "This is hardly violent! In fact, this is just the beginning!" I lunged for the baseball bat I had put beside my bed the previous night. Unfortunately, he got there faster.

"Oh, I found something dangerous." He tossed it to the other side of the room, leaving me with my arm still out, reaching for the weapon. "There, that's better." He shivered slightly. "I'm kind of cold…Come help warm me up Nagi." _Whoa, whoa. What's with this situation?_

"No thank you!" I retorted, reddening. "Here! Use the blanket if you're cold!" I tossed it at him.

He pouted. "But did you know that body heat is more effective at warming people up than blankets?"

"Yeah, well, I'm not cold so find a solution by yourself."

He sighed. "You're no fun."

"Good!" I relaxed slightly. Which was a mistake. The next thing I knew, I was in his lap and he had his arms around my waist. Grinning, he planted his lips on mine. I was too stunned to do anything.

Breaking off the kiss, he laughed. "Tricked you." He smiled mischievously at me, eyes sparkling. _What…just happened…?_ _Did Grimmjow just kiss me? No, wait. Did Eli just kiss me? I think Eli just kissed me. I was just kissed. By Eli. On the lips. _I felt my face burst into flames.

"Argh, you…" Gathering the last scraps of my dignity, I glared murderously at him. I struggled and squirmed, trying to slip out of his grasp, but in vain.

* * *

And that was how Grimmjow found us. Me, on Eli's lap shoving at his face while he resolutely kept his arms locked around my waist. The look on Grimmjow's face wasn't very pretty.

"Just what the hell do you think you're doin' with my body?"

* * *

**Trippy - **I don't know if you guys are familiar with this word, but it basically means weird, or confusing. Stuff like that. Search it up in Urban Dictionary if you want to find out more meanings.


	13. Chapter 13

BLEACH – Into a New World

Hi guys~

So, I have a bit of an announcement to make.

School has just started again for me, and it just happens to be the busiest time of the year for the students who are in their last year of high school. Which is me. Therefore, I just wanted to give you guys a heads up on the fact that I won't be updating as much because I'll be super busy with exam preparation and things like that.

It's not like I won't write, but it's just that it'll take me longer to write chapters. I hope you guys understand. TT_TT

Anyway, I hope you all enjoy~

DISCLAIMER: Bleach belongs to Tite Kubo. I just own Nagi and Eli.

* * *

Chapter 13: We don't want it!

Grimmjow stared down at the two of us as we sat meekly before him in a seiza position.

"You should be grateful I'm even lettin' you live this long to explain." Grimmjow growled. I could feel the murderous intent rolling off his body.

I gulped. "Yes. Uh, thanks." It truly was a miracle.

"So?" he raised an eyebrow.

"Well." I cleared my throat nervously. "Mr. Urahara made a Gikon for your Gigai since the normal ones didn't seem to work, and he's called Eli." I motioned to Eli, who knelt beside me, hunched over. "But he's a perverted playboy and-"

His head whipped up. "Am not!" he interrupted indignantly.

"Yes you are!" I retorted stiffly. "Why else would you crawl into my bed while I'm sleeping?"

"I was cold!"

"It's summer!"

"You did WHAT with my body?" _Hssss._ We both shut up and shrunk smaller into ourselves as we heard Grimmjow draw his sword. _Maybe it would be a bad idea to tell him about the kiss…_ "I'm gonna cut you to ribbons…"

I watched as the blood drained from his face. I didn't blame him. This was the angriest I had ever seen him. And I had to say; an angry Grimmjow was a truly fearsome one.

"I'm sorry! I'm sorry!" Eli flung himself at Grimmjows feet, begging. "I won't do it again! I promise!"

"Well, I'm gonna make sure you don't do it again." Grimmjow raised his Zanpakuto menacingly.

"WAIT!" I leapt between the two.

"Nagi!" Eli cried gratefully, cowering behind me.

"What?" Grimmjow scowled at my intervention.

"Please…do it outside. You're going to get blood all over my carpet."

"Nagi!" Eli clung to my leg, looking up at me pleadingly. "Nagi! Please stop him! I don't want to die! I'll be good! I promise!" he sobbed, prostrating himself before me. I held back a smug grin. It felt kind of good to have the stupid perv grovel at my feet.

"Ahem," I cleared my throat. _I guess I should do something since he's begging like that._ I looked at Grimmjow. "You do realize that you'll be cutting up your own body? And before you say 'I'll just get Urahara to make me a new one.' you know that he'll charge you for it, right?"

"I don't care!" he snapped. "I don't need that damn Gigai anyway!"

I stared up at him imploringly. "Please?"

Grimmjow paused, Zanpakuto still raised above his head. I could almost see the gears turning in his head. Finally, with a disappointed sigh, he slowly lowered and sheathed his Katana. I shot a look at Eli. _You owe me big-time. _I signaled with my eyes. He, in return, nodded furiously.

"I'm gonna kill that shitty Shinigami." Grimmjow muttered angrily. "Why are all Shinigamis so damn annoyin'?"

"Oh, right." I suddenly remembered. "Mr. Urahara told me that you went to Soul Society with Kurosaki. What did you have to go there for?"

"Tch." He flopped onto my bed. "Had to go to get the verdict for my punishment."

"Punishment?" There was a roiling feeling in my stomach. "What punishment? Why?"

He gave me a strange look. "I tried to kill people and destroy Soul Society, remember? It's not like they were gonna let me get away with that."

"Oh." My palms were clammy with cold sweat. "Oh, right. So, uh, what's your punishment?"

"Well, those old geezers couldn't decide in the end. 'Coz apparently I did 'good stuff' in the human world, so they have to reconsider."

"Oh." I relaxed. I glanced at my palms, wincing slightly. I had clenched my fists so tightly; there were marks from my nails. _I got scared, all for nothing. _I frowned. _Why did I need to be scared anyway? _I stole a glance at Grimmjow. _It's not like they were going to kill him, right? They were probably just going to lock him up for a while. Probably._ Annoyed, I shook my head vigorously. _Whatever, I don't care anymore._

"Um." Eli suddenly piped up. "What about me?" I turned to look at him, surprised. For a second, I had forgotten about the problem at hand.

I sighed, rubbing the back of my neck. "Well, we take you back to Mr. Urahara, I guess."

"Good." Grimmjow stood, with a grim look on his face. "I'm comin' with you. I got somethin' to say to that bastard."

* * *

"URAHARA YOU BASTARD!" I winced as Grimmjow kicked the sliding door in, revealing a startled Mr. Urahara in the middle of a conversation with a black cat. My forehead puckered. _It's a cute cat, but I wasn't aware that Mr. Urahara_ _had a cat. Or that he was mentally unstable for that matter._ Stalking over to the blond man, Grimmjow grabbed the front of his Jinbei, pulling him up so that they were on eye level with each other.

"My, my, what seems to be the problem?" Mr. Urahara chuckled easily, adjusting his bucket hat.

"You know what the problem is, asshole!" Grimmjow gave him a shake. "You messed around with my Gigai while I was gone!"

"What?" Mr. Urahara laughed. "I don't know what you're talking about."

Stiffly, Grimmjow jerked a thumb in my direction, to where Eli crouched behind me. I gave Mr. Urahara an I-told-you-so look.

"Ok, fine. I know what you're talking about." Mr. Urahara sighed, shaking his head with regret. "I didn't think you'd find out so soon."

"You bastard, I sho-" Suddenly there was a 'poof' sound, and the room filled with smoke.

"What's this?" I muttered, trying to wave away the smoke. "Did he have a smoke bomb hidden in advance?"

"Kisuke, is this the problem child you were talking about the other day?" The new voice was female, strong and confident. The smoke cleared, revealing a young woman with tanned skin, golden eyes and long purple hair that tumbled down her bare back. _Wait a second. She's…naked?_ _Oh-no. _I looked over at Eli.

"That chest…that ass…" he mumbled, eyes wide and glazed. _Crap. I should've known. _ I quickly slapped a hand over his eyes while wrapping my free arm around his neck. _What about Grimmjow?_ He was staring at her as well, but with his eyes narrowed.

"Who the hell are you?" he snarled, one hand on his Zanpakuto.

"Me?" She casually flicked a strand of hair behind her. "I'm Yoruichi."

"Um, Miss Yoruichi." She looked at me, surprised. "Could you please-" I paused to tighten my stranglehold on a struggling Eli. "-Put on some clothes?"

"Oh?" she ambled closer, bending down to take a better look at me. "Kisuke." she called over her still-bare shoulder. "Is this cute girl the one who the problem child is staying with?"

"Yes, she is." Mr. Urahara had finally somehow untangled himself from Grimmjows grasp.

She crossed her arms thoughtfully. "She reminds me of someone."

"Um." I interrupted her pondering. "Clothes. Please." It was getting harder to keep my hold on Eli.

She burst into laughter. "Sure, sure. We'll talk after I get dressed then."

* * *

"So, what's your name?" She sat down cross-legged at the table, opposite me.

"Um, I'm Kawada Nagi. Nice to meet you." I shyly gave a small bow.

"Nice to meet you too. I'm Yoruichi. Shihouin Yoruichi."

"Uh, Miss Shiho-"

"Just call me Yoruichi. Saying Miss Shihouin, or even Miss Yoruichi makes me sound old."

"Oh, ok. Um, Yoruichi, are you from Soul Society too?"

"Hm? Yeah, I guess." _Well that explains how she was able to turn herself into a cat. _"But enough about me, what did you come here for before things got messy?"

"Well…" I glanced at Eli who was bound and gagged. "We came to return Eli."

"You don't want him?" Mr. Urahara enquired.

Grimmjow smacked the table. "Damn right we don't! Now get him out of my Gigai!"

"Alright, alright." With a disappointed sigh, he ambled over to Eli and took off his gag.

"Nagi! How co-Gah!" Mr. Urahara had thumped the end of his cane into Eli's stomach. I winced. It looked like it hurt. Moments later, a small blue pill popped out of Eli's mouth. Mr. Urahara picked it up. "This," he showed me, "is Eli."

I stared wondrously at the small object. _This…is the stupid, perverted, playboy who kissed me. _Gingerly, I picked it up, lips curving up into a delighted grin. _Your life is in my hands. _I cackled evilly in my head. _Literally._

"Gimme that." Having slipped back into his Gigai, Grimmjow quickly grabbed the pill off me. "I'm gonna crush him."

"No, no, that won't do." Mr. Urahara snatched it off Grimmjow as soon as it left my palm. "I worked so hard to make this, and now you want to destroy it?" He turned to me. "Nagi, please reconsider. Even though he has a perverted personality, I'm sure he'll be useful in the future."

"I don't think-"

"Nagi." It was Yoruichi. "If his perverted nature is the only problem, it's not actually all that bad. Just beat some sense into him. You're a strong girl, I'm sure you can do that much, right?"

"Oh…" I was flattered to be called a 'strong girl'. "I guess…"

"Alright!" Ignoring Grimmjow's death glare, Mr. Urahara shoved the pill into my hand, closing my fingers around it. "Now, all you need to do is to find a toy to be his temporary body."

"Huh? A toy?"

"Yes." Mr. Urahara nodded, tapping his fan against the palm of his hand. "It's so that it will be able to remove itself from danger and follow you around when needed."

"So…" I said slowly. "You're saying that the toy will become Eli? And it'll be able to move around and talk?" _That doesn't sound like something I'd like Eli to be able to do. _I took another glance at the pill. _I'd much rather him stay like this…_

"Oohh, you're fast!" Mr. Urahara complimented. "So do you have anything like that at home?"

"At home? Well…" I hesitated. "I…think so…"

"Great!" he clapped his hands together. "Oh, but it might be better to find it as soon as possible though, as such a small thing can get lost easily." He looked at me pointedly. "And then I would have no choice but to-"

"Alright! Alright!" I waved my hands around wildly. "I got it, I got it." I didn't want to hear anything about having to spend money. _I guess I have no choice then. _Standing up, I picked up my bag. "Well then, I think I'll go get Eli a body now." Turning to Yoruichi, I gave a small bow. "It was nice meeting you, Yoruichi."

She grinned. "Likewise."

* * *

"Yo, Nagi. You're goin' the wrong way." Perplexed, Grimmjow pointed in the opposite direction. "Our house is THAT way."

"Yeah, I know, but we're not going home just yet."

"Huh?" he frowned, puzzled. "Didn't you say that you were gonna get him a body? And that we had one at home?"

I hesitated, chewing on my bottom lip. "Well…it's actually somewhere similar." I sighed as memories flooded back.

"It's my old house."

* * *

**Seiza ****- **It's a formal way of sitting in Japan. It's just when you have your legs tucked under your bum. Extremely painful, and often used as a punishment. Try it. I bet you won't last longer than 5 minutes. XD

**Jinbei - **That's the green stuff that Uraharas always wearing. They're actually considered pajamas in Japan. So if you're planning to go further than your mailbox, you need to change. Urahara just completely disregards social norms.


	14. Chapter 14

BLEACH – Into a New World

Ok guys, I know I said that I wouldn't be uploading anything until late November (Did I? I did, right? I can't remember...), but seeing as I have finished my first exam (which was a Japanese Oral exam, for anyone who's interested), I thought that it called for a celebratory new chapter.

But this doesn't mean that I'll be uploading a celebratory chapter for every exam I finish, I just felt like I've kept you guys waiting for too long. I'm sorry. :(

This chapter is a tad more serious, but not to worry, there is still a fair amount of funny stuff. :D

Enjoy~~

DISCLAIMER: Bleach doesn't belong to me, I only have Nagi and Eli.

* * *

Chapter 14: 7 Years Worth of Dust

I stood in front of the small house, gazing at it's exterior. _It's been seven years, huh?_

The bright yellow door was dirtier than I remembered and the paint was peeling in some places. One of the windowpanes was cracked as well, but other than that, it was exactly as I remembered.

"So, we gonna go in, or not?" Grimmjow shuffled impatiently. He had calmed down considerably on the way here.

"Oh. Oh, yeah." Reaching inside my shirt, I took out a key, which was on a thin chain around my neck.

"Whoa. you still have the key to a place you haven't been to in seven years?"

"Yeah." I looked at it, sitting in the middle of my palm. "It has sentimental value." Carefully, I fitted it into the keyhole. It slid in without a hitch. "When I was younger, my mum had to work long hours to support us, so I had to go home by myself every day." I pushed open the door with a creak. "She put the key on this chain to hang around my neck so I wouldn't lose it."

Stepping into the narrow hallway, I motioned for Grimmjow to follow me. "The attic is this way."

"But hang on, if you already have a house, why don't you live here? Seems like a pretty neat place to me." Grimmjow looked around.

"Well…its kind of big…for only one person." I muttered. That was a lie. The truth was, the idea of living here without my mum made me sad.

Overwhelmed by nostalgia, I wandered slowly through the house on my way to the attic. Everything was covered with a thick layer of dust. I looked back to see our footprints. It was like walking through ash, or grey snow. I paused outside my old room. It was empty now, but I could remember vividly what it looked like seven years ago. The walls used to be a bright, buttercup yellow, and there used to be a small bed with an even smaller wooden table beside it. I remembered how my mum would read me bedtime stories every night. But it was all gone now. Sighing again, I shook my head and moved on. _I'm here to find Eli a body, not reminisce. _

* * *

Reaching the attic, I grasped the doorknob and gave it a firm tug. It didn't budge. I frowned. _It's stuck. _Propping my foot against the frame, I pulled again, using my full weight. Suddenly, there was a cracking sound and I fell backwards, onto my butt.

"Ow!" Wincing, I got up, rubbing my bruised backside. _It should be open now, right?_ My spirits deflated when I looked up. It wasn't. The doorknob had come off, but the door still stubbornly stayed in place.

"Nagi, you suck." Grimmjow smirked.

"You try it then!" I snapped irritably. My backside still really hurt.

"Sure." I watched as he raised his leg. _I've got a bad feeling about this._

"Uh, the door opens outwar-" I cringed as he smashed his foot against the door, effectively giving us a way into the room, but also, breaking down the door completely.

"Look, no hands." He grinned at me. _Maybe I shouldn't have asked him to try. _I sighed.

Gingerly, I stepped over the busted door, into the attic.

"Wow, boxes everywhere." Grimmjow commented, stepping in behind me.

"Yeah." I agreed, eyeing the mess. _This is going to take a while, isn't it? _I rolled up my sleeves. "Let's get started."

* * *

Gripping the edges tightly, I slid the top box off. "Ouff!" I grimaced. "Aren't heavy boxes supposed to be on the bottom?" I muttered under my breath.

"What?" Somehow, Grimmjow had overheard my mumbling. "It's heavy?" he beckoned to me. "Give it here."

"No!" I rejected his offer stubbornly. I refused to be one of those weak girls who had to get a guy to do everything for her. And after everything Eli had done to me while in his body, it was uncomfortable to be that close to Grimmjow. "It's not heavy, I'm fine." Grimmjow raised an eyebrow sceptically, but moved aside to let me pass.

Edging over to a more roomy section of the attic, I attempted to set it down. But unfortunately, it slipped from my hands and fell on my toes with a thud.

"AARRGGHHHHH! GODAMMIT!" Eyes squeezed shut; I curled into a small ball on the dusty floor, clutching my throbbing toes. "Augghhh…" I moaned. "Pain…" I became dimly aware of Grimmjow squatting down next to me. I opened my eyes slightly to see him smirking down at me.

"Told you to give it to me, didn't I?" I felt my face begin to heat up. _His face is so close. Too close._

Quickly, I uncurled myself and stood up, brushing the dust off my clothes.

"I'm fine." I said mulishly, shuffling backwards, away from Grimmjow while being careful not to put weight onto my toes.

"Really?" he stood up, still smirking. "Nothin' broken?"

I wiggled my toes carefully. They still hurt, but nothing was broken. "No." I looked at him smugly. "No broken bones."

"Alright then." Shrugging, he turned back to search through other boxes. Carefully, I hobbled over to the opposite side of the room. It just wasn't comfortable being in touching range of him anymore.

* * *

Wiping the sweat off my forehead, I grunted as I pushed open the rusted hinges of the window to let the fresh air in. Leaning against the wall, I surveyed the cluttered mess. I was exhausted, but Grimmjow was still having fun, rummaging around for nothing in particular. I watched as he flicked through my old workbooks, my colouring book, and old photo album, occasionally commenting on how bad my colouring skills were or my handwriting. I sighed, irritated. He was having way too much fun. Besides, my colouring skills weren't _that_ bad.

"Grimmjow, don't tell me you forgot what we were here for?"

"Huh?" He looked up. "You kiddin' me? I'm way ahead of you." he tossed a small soft object at me. I made a grab for it, but missed. Bending down to pick it up, I glared at him.

"Why do you have to throw things?" I muttered. Brushing off the dust, I held the object out in front of me. It was a blue jellyfish plushie. "Oh." A smile tugged at my lips. I had memories of it sitting on my bedside table. At that time, I was worried about it getting dirty if I played with it too much, and so I would just sit and stare at it, occasionally reaching out to fiddle with one of it's six blue tentacles. Even after seven years, it was still in good condition. Slightly dusty, but not so much that it needed to be washed.

"Should do." Taking out the pill that was Eli, I bought it to the small curved mouth of the toy. But it seemed to have a mind of it's own, slipping through my fingers, rolling to a stop against one of the boxes on Grimmjows side. Scrunching up my face, I sighed. I really didn't want to go over there. But if I asked Grimmjow to pass it, he'd probably throw it at me, which wasn't a very good idea, considering how small it was. Grudgingly, I began to shuffle over, all the while keeping a wary eye on the blue haired man tossing various objects over his shoulder. I was so focused on Grimmjow; I didn't notice the baseball on the ground in front of me until it was too late.

"GYAHHH!" I flailed my arms around wildly, trying to regain my balance. It wasn't working. I squeezed my eyes shut, bracing myself from the impact. But instead I felt myself being pulled upright by an arm around my waist. Cracking open one eye, I felt my face burst into flames when I realized how close I was to Grimmjow. I peeked down. His arm was still around my waist. My thoughts became incoherent at that point. _Oh crap. What am I supposed to do? I can't think properly, he's too damn close. Why can't he just move away? _My eyes flickered around madly, trying to find something other than his face to focus on. _This is really bad for my heart. I think I'm having a heart attack. What should I do? I think I should say something. _

"Uh…" My mind was completely blank. "Er…"

Looking down at me, he smirked. "What's the matter?" His smirk turned into a grin. "Cat got your tongue?"

I met his eyes for a fleeting second before I had to look away. _Yes actually, the cat has got my tongue. _

Still beet red, I hurriedly untangled myself from his grasp, moving a good three metres away. "I-in any case, t-thankyou." I stuttered, shoving my hands into my pockets.

"Sure." Flashing me one last grin, he turned back to continue his poking around. Shaken, I snatched up the blue pill and dashed back to my original position, next to the window. Taking a few deep breaths to calm down, I roughly shoved the pill into the mouth of the jellyfish toy.

I watched, slightly stunned as the toy came to life in my hands.

"Oh! Nagi! My princess!" Eli leapt forward, wrapping two soft tentacles around my neck, nestling against my chest. All of a sudden, he became aware of his new body. Detaching himself from me, he looked down at himself. "I'm a…jellyfish."

I nodded. "Yeah, so?"

He opened his mouth to say something, but then closed it again. "Nothing!" he beamed at me. I looked suspiciously at his smiling face. It felt like he was lying. Unaware of my misgiving, he snuggled closer. "They got so much bigger…" he muttered under his breath, but unfortunately, I heard him. And I knew what he was talking about. A vein began to pulse in my forehead. I was not in the mood to be forgiving. Pulling him off, I set him on top of a box, holding two of his tentacles in my hands.

"Eli?" I smiled sweetly.

"Yes?" He looked up.

"Do you know what hammer throw is?"

"No?"

Still smiling, I tightened my grip on his tentacles. "Let me show you."

Straightening, I lifted him up by his tentacles. Then I began to spin. Once, twice, three times. Letting go, I watched as he sailed though the open window, wailing. Satisfied, I slammed it shut. Our work here was done.

"Yo, Nagi."

Flinching slightly, I turned to look at Grimmjow warily. "What?"

"What's this?" He held up an envelope, yellowed with age.

"I'm not sure." I squinted, trying to get a better look. I didn't want to get too close to Grimmjow, but my curiosity eventually got the better of me. Grimacing, I inched forward to snatch it off Grimmjow before quickly shuffling backwards, looking at him reproachfully. Turning my attention onto the envelope, I carefully slid a finger under the flap, opening it. Peering inside, my eyes widened.

"A photo!" I exclaimed. Eagerly, I took it out. "What…" My voice trailed off as I looked at it. _This can't be right._

"What?" Grimmjow had silently crept up behind me to peek over my shoulder at the photo. "Hey, isn't this your biological mum?"

I nodded slowly. "Yes…but…" My mind was racing. Just what did this picture mean?

Reaching over, Grimmjow plucked it out of my hands. "Why's she wearin' a Shinigami uniform?"

I stared at the ground, brows furrowed. "I…don't know…"

"Could it be, your mum's actually a Shinigami?" Grimmjow joked, laughing, but his smile faded when I didn't respond.

"Mr. Urahara." I murmured quietly.

"What?"

I looked up at Grimmjow. "Mr. Urahara." I repeated. "He should know something."

He had to know. If the picture was what I thought it was…then what would that make me?

* * *

Guys, I know I used "cell phone" in an earlier chapter, seeing as a fair amount of you are from America, and maybe it's just me, but I have been led to believe that "cell phone" is what they call mobiles in America?

Anyway, typing "mom" every time was a bit weird for me, seeing as I don't live in America, so I just stuck to how I'm used to seeing it. So the bottom line is, is that I will be using "mobile" and "mum" from now on instead of "cell phone" and "mom".

Sorry to the people who find it weird.


	15. Chapter 15

BLEACH – Into a New World

Hi guys~~ I'm back~~ And guess what?

All my exams are finally. FINALLY. FINNAALLLLYYYYYYYY OVER! Which is why I was able to upload this chapter. Yay~

On a different note...OMFG. RISE OF THE GUARDIANS...JACK FROST...NORTH...BUNNYMUND...ALL MY FEELS. I'M GOING TO SEE THAT MOVIE NO MATTER WHAT. NOTHING CAN KEEP ME AWAY. Oh~ Jack Frost 3

ANYWAY. I hope you enjoy this chapter, even if it's a bit serious that the previous ones. Actually, to be honest, this is where the drama starts. I hope you like it anyway. XD

DISCLAIMER: You've probably been reading long enough to know which characters are mine and which ones are not.

* * *

Chapter 15: Half Shinigami?

Tensely, I slid the envelope across the table towards Mr. Urahara and Yoruichi. Mr. Urahara peered up at me from under his hat.

"What's this?" he picked it up, turning it over in his fingers.

I swallowed nervously. "Just open it."

"Hmm." He murmured as he pulled out the photo. "Interesting."

"What is?" Impatiently, Yoruichi plucked it out of his hands. "Huh." She muttered. "Isn't that one the girl who came to ask you for help all those years ago?" she nudged Mr. Urahara with her elbow, pointing at the picture.

He nodded, rubbing his stubble. "Yes…I remember her being quite a stubborn one."

"Look at the barracks behind them, isn't it from the Thirteenth Division?" Yoruichi handed the photo back to Mr. Urahara for confirmation.

"You're right." He mused. "But I wonder when this was taken…"

"Ahem." I cleared my throat, drawing their attention. "I-I want to know," I paused, struggling to find a way to word my question properly. "I want to know why my mum is in that picture, wearing a Shinigami uniform."

Their shocked stares were unnerving. Awkwardly, I looked away.

"Are you sure," Mr. Urahara began slowly, "that this is your mother?"

"Of course I'm sure!" I snapped tersely. "Who wouldn't recognize their own mothers face?" The stress was getting to me.

"Well." Unfazed by my outburst, he sat back, glancing at Yoruichi. "That would explain a lot."

"Hmm." She nodded in agreement. "No wonder I thought you looked familiar. And it also explains your higher than usual Reiryoku."

"T-then it's true? I'm h-half Shinigami?" I stuttered. "B-but how? I mean, my dad was human…how did she end up here? Did she get exiled or something? Did she defect? What did she do?" My chest tightened at the possibility of my mother being a criminal. _She was so kind…it's impossible right?_

"No no no, it was nothing like that." Mr. Urahara reassured me. "Perhaps I should explain from the start."

* * *

"Your mother, Kawada Yukio was a Shinigami from the Thirteenth Division." He paused to take a sip of his tea. "From what I remember, she wasn't a seated member, but…" he trailed off, deep in thought.

"But?" I pressed.

"No, no, that's something else. I'll tell you later. Anyway, a couple of years after I left Soul Society, she was assigned to watch over Karakura town. I suppose that's how she was able to get into contact with me." he mused.

"Why? Why did she need to contact you?"

"Well one day, she just appeared in my shop asking me to make a Reiatsu suppressing Gigai for her, like the one I have. I was very surprised of course, I had taken all sorts of measures to make sure Soul Society wouldn't find me, seeing as I was a bit of an outlaw at that time, but she still managed to find me. So I asked her what she needed the Gigai for. I remember her being very stubborn and refusing to tell me until I told her that I wouldn't make it until she did. Turns out she'd fallen in love with some human man and wanted to be with him."

"Dad." I whispered to myself.

Mr. Urahara sighed, shaking his head. "After hearing something as insane as that, I said no of course. It was putting both of us in danger, and making a Reiatsu suppressing Gigai was hard work, you know. But she kept pestering me, saying that she could pay, and that she had a plan and so in the end, I took pity on her and told her I'd make one. But my one condition was that after she got her Gigai from me, she would never come to me again. If her plan failed, and she was followed, it would've been trouble if they found me too."

"What was her plan?" I asked.

Mr. Urahara shrugged. "I don't know. But to leave undetected from Soul Society, the least she would've had to do was to fake her own death. So I can only assume that she took advantage of a hollow attack, because she was covered in blood and looked half dead when she came to collect her Gigai." He frowned. "But that was the confusing part."

"Why?" I asked.

He glanced at me. "Well, for an unseated member, fighting and defeating a hollow is hard enough as it is, but to be able to not only survive an attack, but to also make it seem like you were killed, it requires the skills, stamina, and the power of at least a 10th seat."

"But she wasn't a seated member…" my brows furrowed. "Which means…"

"She may have been more powerful that she seemed." Yoruichi finished. "And after meeting you, it seems more than possible. Your Reiryoku is proof."

"But why would she hide power like that I wonder…" Mr. Urahara tapped his fan on the table.

"I think," I hesitated, "I think she just didn't wanted to be promoted. I think she was happy with what she already had. She used to tell me all the time, that: "Status and power isn't everything"."

"Well," he sighed, "it does seem like something she'd say. What a waste though…"

Suddenly, Grimmjow who had been unusually quiet throughout the explanation spoke up. "So is Nagi gonna become a Shinigami when she dies?"

Surprised, I turned to look at Mr. Urahara inquisitively. I'd never considered that possibility before.

"Yes," he answered, "and quite a strong one too, I'd say."

"We'll keep an eye out for when you die." Yoruichi added. "I look forward to seeing your Zanpakuto." She grinned.

"Well." I muttered. "Thanks…I guess?" Out of the corner of my eye, I noticed that Grimmjows expressions had become unreadable.

"It's getting late," Mr. Urahara stood up and stretched, "time for you kids to go home."

* * *

I dawdled behind Grimmjow, chewing on my lip worriedly. I was half Shinigami. Grimmjow hated Shinigami. Did that mean he hated me? Or half hated me? Somehow, it made me uneasy.

"So, you're half Shinigami, huh." Grimmjow suddenly broke the silence, startling me.

"Uh, yeah…I guess." _Is he mad?_ I couldn't see his face.

"Hn."

_I knew it, he's mad. _"Sorry."

"Whaddaya mean, 'sorry'?" he demanded, turning to face me. Flinching, I looked away.

"U-uh, well, I just meant that, um, sorry I turned out to be something you hated…"

"How stupid can you get?" his eyes glittered in the dark. "You're only half Shinigami, which means you ain't a Shinigami, which means you ain't like them. Got it?"

"Um…yes…" _what kind of logic is that? _But I was glad. Even if it was a bit rough around the edges, his attempt to comfort me was quite sweet. There was a strange warm and fuzzy feeling inside my chest and I couldn't stop smiling. It was like I was in lo-_WOOAAAHHH HANG ON A MINUTE NOW. _Taking a deep breath, I pinched the bridge of my nose. _This is wrong. This is aalll wrong. What am I, crazy? How could I- what the heck- WHAT IS WRONG WITH ME?_ I shook my head to clear out my brain. _This must be a side effect of listening to my mums love story. Of course it is. What else could it be? Got to get this out of my brain…_My head shaking became more frenzied.

"Hey, Nagi."

Disorientated, I looked up. "Yes?"

"Didn't you say that school was startin' tomorrow?"

"Oh crap!" I slapped my forehead in despair. I'd forgotten all about it! _And I haven't finished my homework yet…_Beginning to panic, I broke into a wobbly sprint, leaving Grimmjow behind.

* * *

Grumbling, I tossed my bag on my table and plopped into my seat, resting my head in my arms. I had stayed up the whole night finishing my holiday homework and now had "panda eyes" as Keiko had so kindly pointed out.

"Soooo…" Ayame wiggled her eyebrows at me.

"What?" I looked blearily up at her excited face. Seriously, what was there to be excited about? It was the first day of school.

"Anything happen between you and you-know-who while I was in Hawaii?"

"And while I was in Hokkaido?" Keiko interjected. I glared weakly up at her. She just wanted to rub in the fact that I was the only one who didn't go anywhere for the holidays.

"So?" Ayame leaned forward eagerly.

"So what?" I blinked owlishly at her. I'd already forgotten the question.

She sighed, exasperated. "So did anything happen between you and Grimmjow?"

At the mention of his name, an image of Eli kissing me while in Grimmjows body popped up. I felt my face burst into flames. Not the best response to the type of question Ayame was asking.

"Oh. MY. GAAWWWDDDDD!" she screamed, causing the rest of the people in the classroom to turn around and stare at us.

"Shhhh!" I hissed at her. "Too loud!"

"Oh my god, something happened didn't it, tell me what happened, details, details, details!" she was bouncing up and down in her seat, and Keiko's eyes glittered with excitement.

"Nothing happened!" I snapped roughly.

"Your face doesn't say that." Ayame teased, poking my still warm cheek. "So tell us, what happened?"

"Ummm…" _Grimmjow kissed me; only it wasn't Grimmjow, but a perverted soul who was in his body at the time. _As if I was going to tell them. I couldn't even if I wanted to. Shifting uncomfortably in my seat, I scrambled for a legitimate excuse. "Seriously, nothing happened, uh, it's just that, um, I ran to school today, and err, yeah…I'm feeling kind of warm because of that."

"Hmmm. I see." Their eyes narrowed. I could tell they weren't buying it.

"I'm not lying!" I desperately insisted.

"Hmmm."

"I, uh, I woke up really late because I was trying to finish my homework last night," that wasn't a complete lie; I actually didn't sleep at all, because of homework.

"Hmmm."

"And, uh, I had to run to school…yeah…"

"Hmmm." Keiko had just opened her mouth for the second round of interrogation when the bell went for the first class.

"Yes." I muttered to quietly, allowing myself a small congratulatory fist pump. But when I looked up, both of them were staring at me with looks of 'this isn't over yet' etched across their faces. I rolled my eyes. Of course it wasn't. I knew better than that. Those two were like bloodhounds on a hunt.

"Class, class, quiet down!" the teacher clapped his hands and waited for the students to settle. "I have some exciting news for you all. Today, we have a new transfer student."

The class murmured. A new transfer student? This late in the year? It was unusual. There were whispers of "I hope it's a really cute girl…" and "it'd be great if it was a hot guy…" floating around the classroom.

Aggravated, the teacher clapped his hands again "Settle, settle everyone, otherwise, I can't introduce her. Come in please."

My jaw dropped as the door slid open and she walked in. _You've got to be kidding me…what the heck is she doing here?_

"Please introduce yourself." The teacher smiled kindly at her.

"Hi everybody, my name is Akimoto Kimiko, nice to meet you all." Then, without paying attention to the boys' catcalls or the girls' envious expressions, she strode over to my table. "Long time no see." Her blue eyes were cold as she smirked condescendingly down at me. "Little sis."

* * *

DUN DUN DUUUNNNNN.

Sorry. I just had to. XD


	16. Chapter 16

BLEACH – Into a New World

Hey guys~

I realize that some people are a little disappointed that Grimmjow didn't appear all that much in the last chapter, but this is just more character development for Nagi, so I'm sorry, but the story can't move on without this bit. :(

BUT. The good news is, is that after this bit (not this chapter, but this...arc(?)) the level of Grimmjow/Nagi interaction and awkwardness(?) shall go back to normal, if not increase.

I have special plans for the two of them...MUAHAHAHAHAHA!

P.S. Sorry if this chapter was a little awkward and short...it's actually so hard to return to writing if you haven't done it in a while...(and I kinda rushed this...KINDA.)

DISCLAIMER: You know, just the usual...

* * *

Chapter 16: Power Play

"Little sister?" the entire room fell quiet.

"Oh?" She whirled around to face the class. "Didn't she tell you? She's my half sister, and therefore the daughter of the Akimoto Electronics CEO."

There were gasps all around the room. Akimoto Electronics was the biggest electronics company in Japan.

"But," the teacher interrupted, looking bewildered, "half sister? I didn't hear any news of Mr. Akimoto having a wife before Mrs. Akimoto…"

"That's because she's an illegitimate child of course." Kimiko confidently tossed a thick lock of black hair behind her shoulder. "Our father had an affair with her mother. That's why she's my LITTLE sister and not my BIG sister. Father never had a wife before my mother."

I cringed inwardly as a stunned silence filled the room. That wasn't really something I wanted the whole class to know. But it was too late. I was sure that by the end of the day, the whole school would know. Rumors, especially juicy ones, would spread like wildfire.

Quickly recovering from the shock, the teacher cleared his throat. "Ahem…well, in any case, please make her feel welcome…now let's start class."

Giving me one last smirk, she turned and sauntered to her seat. Closing my eyes, I sighed. Kimiko couldn't have come here just because she felt like it; it must've been HER idea. _She really stepped up her game, huh. Going on a full frontal attack._ In that case,what was I supposed to do now? I exhaled quietly. _I'll just have to endure. I'll be fine; it's nothing new anyway. _My eyes flicked over to where my two friends were sitting. I was more worried about how they felt. _Are they mad? Do they feel betrayed that I never told them? _There was a suffocating feeling in my chest as I began to prepare for the confrontation that was sure to come.

* * *

"Why did you never tell us?" Keiko demanded, eyes flashing. We were behind the gym, where no one could listen in on us. I winced slightly at her harsh tone. Keiko was really scary when she was mad.

"Did you not trust us, as your friends?" Ayames expression was withdrawn and disappointed. I shook my head mutedly.

"Then why didn't you tell us anything?"

"How could I tell you?" I burst out. "Was I supposed to tell you when we first met or became friends? Should I have just gone 'Hey, by the way, I'm an illegitimate child, daughter of the Akimoto Electronics CEO.'? And later on, there was never a good time to tell you, because you never asked! When I told you I lived alone, you never asked 'why?'. You just said 'cool, you're so independent!'. Just what was I supposed to say after that? 'I'm only living by myself because no one wants me at home'?" Suddenly fatigued, I closed my eyes, leaning against the cold surface of the wall. There was a long silence after my outburst.

"She has a point." Ayame suddenly said. I opened my eyes. Both of them were shifting uncomfortably on their feet with guilty expressions.

"Yeah…I guess it was partly our fault too." Keiko muttered. "Sorry."

"Haha." I laughed, but my eyes felt moist. "I seriously thought you guys were going to leave me because I didn't tell you anything." I quickly wiped my sleeve over my eyes. "I got all worried for nothing."

"We wouldn't do that! Never!" They both enveloped me in a warm hug.

"Thanks guys." I sniffed, feeling emotional. Hearing the bell go, I reluctantly extracted myself from their arms, "Class is going to start soon, we should go."

* * *

Grimmjow was waiting outside the school gates, as usual.

"You're slow!" he complained as I approached.

"Sorry." I replied vaguely.

"Nagi."

I stiffened at the voice. Slowly, I turned around. "Kimiko."

She smiled kindly at me, but her eyes were locked on Grimmjow. "Who's this, Nagi?"

"T-this is Grimmjow-"

"Is he your boyfriend?"

"Uh, no…"

Smiling sweetly, she walked towards us. "You won't mind if I take him then." She whispered to me as she passed. I didn't even have time to formulate a reply before she was introducing herself to Grimmjow.

"Hi, I'm Kimiko, Nagi's older sister."

He raised an eyebrow at me. I shrugged weakly. She had always been very forward, even when we were children.

"So how long have you known Nagi for?"

"Dunno." He shrugged.

"Well in any case, thank you so much for looking out for her, I know she must be a handful."

Grimmjow smirked at me. "Yeah, she's pretty difficult."

"As her older sister, I'm so thankful, and I hope that I'll be able to find an opportunity to repay you." She smiled coyly up at him from lowered lashes. "I hope we'll meet again."

Spinning on her heel, she sauntered towards the car that was waiting for her, hips swinging. Sighing, I began to walk, without waiting for Grimmjow.

"What's up with you?" Grimmjow commented, catching up quickly.

"Nothing." I replied.

He snorted. "Fine. Whatever."

He evidently didn't believe me.

I sighed. After a few minutes of silent walking, I hesitatingly spoke. "Grimmjow."

"Yeah?"

"If something or someone made you sad, what would you do?"

"Ha. Me?" he jabbed a thumb at himself. "I don't get sad. Never been sad before. Why bother bein' sad when you can get pissed and go around breakin' stuff?"

_Well that didn't help. _"Never mind." I sighed again.

There was a pause before he spoke again. "But if somethin' or someone made you sad, you should just get rid of it."

I pulled a face. "Grimmjow-"

"Yeah, yeah, I know, you can't do that here, right?" he grumbled.

"Right."

Suddenly I felt his hand on my head, ruffling my hair. Surprised, I looked up at him. He was looking straight ahead, and his cheeks were slightly pink. _From the cold wind,_ I guessed. I had just started to feel relaxed when the image of Eli/Grimmjow kissing me flashed across my mind.

"Uh." Quickly, I shuffled away. "I, uh, I'll go on ahead." I muttered before running off. _Close contact is still impossible, huh…_I sighed.

* * *

Startled, I jumped when my phone rang. Reluctantly, I picked it up. I knew who it was going to be.

"Nagi dear, how have you been?"

Sneaking a furtive glance at Grimmjow, I slipped into my room, closing the door behind me. "Fine."

"I'm assuming you've met up with Kimiko?"

"Yes."

"I'm only doing this as a last resort, you know? If you just listened to me, I wouldn't have had to do this." There was a deep sigh on the other end. "I'm only trying to do what's best for you, you know?"

"Yes."

"So why couldn't you have just listened to me and come back?"

"Because."

"Because why?"

"Because I don't think that's what's best for me."

Her voice was strained when she spoke again. "Why can't you just listen to me?"

"…Because I know better."

There was a long silence before the line went dead. I let out a shaky breath. I could almost feel her fury through the phone. It scared me.

There was a small mew as Pantera crawled out from under my bed. I chuckled unsteadily; I didn't even notice he was there. Fondly, I tickled him under his chin.

"I'll have to do something about this whole situation soon." I murmured quietly to myself. "Right Pantera?" I turned to look at the gray cat, but was met with a blue jellyfish instead. "Argh!" I shrieked, scrambling backwards. "Y-y-y-you!" I pointed a shaking finger at Eli. "You're back!"

"Yup!" he did a little twirl. "I'm back!"

"Damn." Grabbing him by his tentacles, I dashed out of my room.

"Wha-" he looked up, surprised as I burst into his room.

"Here, take him." Mercilessly, I threw him at Grimmjow. "Do whatever is necessary to make sure he doesn't get into my room. I'm going to sleep now." Moments later, Eli's screams of terror echoed through the apartment.

* * *

I could feel the change as soon as I stepped into the classroom. Everyone avoided my eyes, even the teacher. It was to be expected though; Kimiko had obviously started her power play. But even without Kimiko's presence, I knew that there were people who wouldn't accept me anymore. Trying not to let it get to me, I went and sat down. But it was difficult. Even though Ayame and Keiko were still the same, other people who I used to talk to on a regular basis didn't even look at me anymore. I would be lying if I said it didn't hurt. It did hurt. It hurt a lot. But nothing showed on my face. I had enough experience to know how to deal with these kinds of situations. I quietly sighed to myself. I couldn't wait for the school day to end. But when the time came, that was no good either. The moment I stepped into the courtyard, I could already see Kimiko standing close to Grimmjow, chatting cheerfully. _How did she get there so fast? _I wondered, but then again, she was always fast when it came to men. Unsure of what to do, I lingered at the door for a moment. _They look good together. _I suddenly realized. She was tall, beautiful and well endowed; her thick wavy black hair flowed down her back. Grimmjow was incredibly handsome. He could wear a sack and still look good. Somewhat depressed for a reason I didn't understand, I slipped around the building and exited the school from a different gate.

"I should text him." I muttered taking my phone out.

**I have something to do today, don't wait for me, and go straight home. **Pressing the send button, I snapped my phone shut with a sigh. I didn't want to see his face today. _I'm acting like some useless heroine of some stupid shoujo manga aren't I? _I thought bitterly. Beginning to relax, I jerked as my phone suddenly beeped. I hadn't expected him to reply to my message.

**Your sis is buying me food.**

"Tch." Irritated, I turned off my phone and shoved it into my bag. "He has no loyalty." I muttered sourly. "That nincompoop." Royally pissed, I stalked towards our apartment, since it wasn't like HE wasn't going to be there anyway.

* * *

It was almost dinnertime when he finally returned. His expression made me want to smack him. He looked happy, satisfied and well fed. Not that he wasn't well fed before.

"Yo, Nagi." He greeted me cheerfully.

"Hn. You're back."

"Yeah. Hey, why did you never tell me about these Takoyaki things?"

"Forgot. I guess."

"Man, your sis got me a couple today, they were pretty damn good."

"Really."

"Yeah."

"…I got homework. I'm going to my room."

I sighed as I closed the door behind me.

"You've been doing that a lot lately." I twitched as I saw Eli sitting casually on my table.

"Doing what?" I asked cautiously.

"Sighing." He mimicked my depressed expression and heaved a sigh.

"No I haven't."

"You have." He said. "If something's bothering you…"

I stared at him curiously. Was he going to offer me some unexpectedly good advice? _Maybe I was too harsh on him…_

His face suddenly broke into a sly grin. "You can always come to me, I'll help you forget aallll about your worries."

Snarling, I grabbed him, throwing him out of my room before slamming the door shut again. And here I was thinking that he was going to give me advice. I was an idiot. "This sucks." I muttered darkly to myself.

* * *

Well, Akimoto Electronics is just some company I made up. Dunno if it's real or not...

And Takoyaki is octopus balls...NOT THAT KIND. It's just a ball with bits of octopus in it. But it's a really delicious Japanese food, go google it.


	17. Chapter 17

BLEACH – Into a New World

Hey guys, long time no...uh...post?

Anyway, I know that it's been a long time since I last posted a chapter, but to be honest, I've been feeling pretty tired recently, for no apparent reason, so I took a little break.

In that break, I actually drew a picture of Grimmjow and Nagi just for fun, but DAMN Grimmjow is hard to draw. I actually thought about making a DevianArt account so I could show you guys, but then I realized that I don't have a scanner, so I thought "I'll just have to take a photo." But then I realized that the lighting was REALLY BAD. And I have no Photoshop. So you guys probably won't be seeing that anytime soon, unless I figure out a way to get Photoshop...

Anyway, with no further ado...CHAPTER 17!

DISCLAIMER: I don't own Bleach...only a few characters here and there...

P.S. Sorry, I know this chapter is short, but if I included what happens next, it would've made it too long. I'll try to get the next chapter out faster.

* * *

Chapter 17: I like…

The classroom buzzed with energy. _What happened? _I wondered. Moving towards my table, I overheard a group of girls' conversation.

"What are you going to wear tonight?"

"I'm wearing a red one shouldered dress."

"Wow, I'm wearing a black floor length dress."

"This is so amazing, I can't believe the whole school's invited to her birthday party!"

"I know right? Must be nice to be rich…"

"And it's pretty formal too…hey, do you think my dress is formal enough?"

_Birthday party? Rich? Formal? _I sighed. That had to be Kimiko. _No wonder I didn't know anything. _Sliding into my seat, I looked up as a shadow fell across my table. _Speak of the devil._

"Good morning, Nagi." She smiled, but it didn't reach her eyes.

"Morning."

"Here." She casually tossed a fancy looking envelope onto my table. "Invitation."

"Oh. Thanks." After she left, I picked it up, looking at it suspiciously. I hadn't expected her to invite me, being the illegitimate child and everything. But I supposed she had appearances to keep up. Shrugging, I slipped it into my bag. I didn't plan on going anyway.

* * *

"Nagi!" I turned to see Keiko and Ayame sprinting towards me.

"Nagi! We tried to call you yesterday! Why didn't you have your phone on?" They slowed to a stop, puffing.

"Oh, whoops." Rummaging in my bag, I found my phone, still off from yesterday. Flipping it open, I turned it on. "Six missed calls…was it urgent or something?"

"Yes it was!" Ayame shook me by the shoulders. "We saw Grimmjow and Kimiko hanging out together yesterday! And Kimiko took Grimmjow again today!"

"I know."

She shook me harder. "Then why didn't you do anything? She's trying to steal your man!"

Irritated, I moved away from her grabbing hands. "He's not my man."

"Not your man?" Keiko laughed in disbelief. "Nagi, you're either blind or stupid."

"I'm neither." I grumbled stubbornly.

Suddenly Ayame grabbed my face and yanked it around so I was looking at her. "Nagi, do you like Grimmjow or not?"

"Grimmjow?" I desperately tried to avoid her prying eyes. "Erm…"

"Yes or no." she pressed.

"Um…I…don't know. I don't know. Ayame, you know I'm not good with these kinds of things."

Sighing, she released me. "Well, you'd better know soon. And just because you're not good with these things doesn't mean you can avoid them, it's not just about you, you know. You've kept him waiting long enough."

"Waiting? What the heck is he waiting for?" I muttered. I saw Keiko shake her head out of the corner of my eye.

"Nagi." Keiko gripped my shoulder firmly. "Go home and think about it. Forget about homework, or anything else for that matter, just think about everything that's happened from the moment you met him."

I shifted uncomfortably. "I have to go…." I mumbled. Turning, I quickly walked away.

"Think about it Nagi, ok?" Keiko called.

"Yeah, ok, ok." I called back. _Maybe. _I thought to myself. _If I feel like it._

* * *

As I ambled home, I came across the spot where I first met Grimmjow. The corner of my lips curled upwards. _I thought he was some animal back then, didn't I? _I shook my head, laughing quietly. _And then when I woke up on the second day…suddenly there was some blue haired man in my apartment. _I struggled not to burst out laughing as I recalled my reaction. _Man…that bruise stayed for a whole two weeks._

"Yo, Nagi."

Jolting, I almost dropped my bag. Unknowingly, I was already at my apartment. And Grimmjow was there too. "Oh. G-Grimmjow. Hi."

"You hear about the massive party your sis is havin'?"

"Uh, yeah."

"You goin'?"

"No." I kicked a small stone. "Are you?"

He shrugged. "Yeah, sure. Why not? Sounds fun."

"You know it's formal right? You need a suit. I'm not getting you one."

"Nah, that's fine. She said she'd get me one."

_Nincompoop. _"Oh. I see." But that was only to be expected. It was Kimiko we were talking about after all.

Quickly, I slipped past him to the stairs that led to our level. It was just so difficult being around him now. _When did this start to happen? _I wondered. _And why? _

"Oh Naaggiiii~" Eli, who was waiting outside the door to our apartment leapt at me gleefully. Absentmindedly, I backhanded him into Grimmjow, who then threw him into a tree. _Maybe I should actually do what Keiko said._ Entering the apartment, I wandered to my room, flopping facedown onto my bed with a sigh. All of a sudden, Ayame's question floated back into my mind.

"_Do you like Grimmjow or not?"_

"Do I?" I wondered quietly. I remembered when he 'saved' me from some stupid teenage boys a while back. Back then he had said, _"This girl is mine." _

Flustered, I hurriedly sat up. That time, I'd brushed it aside as just an object possession type of statement, but was it really that? And then there was that time he wanted to copy the couple we saw while we were shopping. What did that mean? And then there were those times he saved me…and that time he bought me that present…

"Oh no." Embarrassed, I pulled the blanket up to my face. All those times, I'd been so happy, and my heart had been fluttering like crazy. _So does that mean…_ _I like him? I like Grimmjow? _Fleetingly, I recalled a girly magazine Ayame had once made me read. Frowning, I remembered a section that was titled something like 'Signs of Love.'

"What did it say again?" I murmured scratching my head. "Something like…if you become happy and excited by saying 'I like so and so', it means you actually like them." _Should I try it?_

Hesitantly, I tried saying it out loud. "I…like him. I…like G-G-Grimmjow…" Seconds later, I felt my face burst into flames as my heart hammered against my ribcage. "NOOOO!" I wailed loudly, but I couldn't stop the smile spreading across my face. "This can't be! Why? This is impossible!" I laughed, rolling around on my bed like a madman.

"Nagi?" there was a knock on my door. It was Grimmjow. "You ok in there?"

Suddenly shy, I covered my face with a pillow, even though he couldn't see me. "Me? Uh, yeah, I'm fine. Thanks." I giggled quietly into the pillow._ I think I'm getting the crazies._

"Well, I'm goin' now."

"Going?" I straightened. "Going where?"

"Your sis' party, remember?"

"Oh. Yeah." My earlier elation abruptly deflated. _I forgot. Just because I like him, doesn't mean he likes me back…_

"See ya then."

"Ok. Bye." Despondent, I flopped back down on my bed. "This sucks." I muttered.

* * *

I groaned as my mobile started to ring. "It's the weekend…this had better be important." I sleepily mumbled. I yawned as I flipped it open. "Hello?"

"Good morning Nagi."

"Oh." I grimaced. "Kimiko. How'd you get my number?"

"I have my ways."

I sighed. "Of course. So why are you calling me?"

"For you to pick up Grimmjow."

"Grimmjow?" I sat up straight. "He's still at your place?"

"You didn't even notice he didn't come back home?" I could almost envision her rolling her eyes. "How careless."

"Why is he still at your place?"

She sighed. "You'll know if you come."

"Ok…" then, a thought struck me. "Why are you calling me to pick him up?" _Don't tell me she knows we're living together…_

"Because you're living together, of course."

I face palmed. "How do you know this?"

"Grimmjow told me."

I face palmed again. _Oh, right. I forgot to tell him not to tell her…_

"Nagi, just come." She huffed impatiently before hanging up.

Still holding my phone, I silently lay back in bed. What was Grimmjow doing at her house? Unless it was a sleepover? Getting up, I rummaged in my bag until I found the envelope. Tearing it open, I checked the invitation. _Nope. Not a sleepover._ Then why was he still there?

"Don't tell me…" I whispered as my mind went into overdrive. _No. _I shook my head furiously. _It shouldn't be…right?_ Perplexed, I paced my room. _Should I go? But I don't want to go…should I just give her my address?_ Flipping open my mobile again, my fingers hesitated on the number pad. _Should I?_

"Aren't you going to pick him up?"

Twitching, I whirled around to see Eli sitting on my bedside table. "You…" I snarled menacingly.

"Well aren't you?"

"How long have you been here for?" I demanded

He waved his blue tentacles vaguely. "A while. So what're you going to do?"

"What?" I stared at him blankly, thrown off by his question.

"Are you going to go get him?"

Sighing, I sunk back onto my bed. "I don't know."

"Why? Are you scared of your sister?"

"Maybe. Not really."

"I think you should go."

"Yeah?" I looked at him suspiciously. _Oh-no, I'm not falling for that again._ _He's going to try and trick me again._

"You have to face her sometime, why not now?" he shrugged. "It's no good to drag these things out."

Surprised, I stared at him. He was unusually serious. And he had a point. I gave him a wan smile. "Maybe you're right. I guess I'll go then." Standing, I grabbed some clothes from my closet. But when I turned around, he was still sitting there. "Um, Eli. I have to change."

He grinned. "I know. That's why I'm here."

"Tch." Quickly, I grabbed him and stuffed him into a small brown bag, tying it up and leaving it on the kitchen table. Hearing his muffled shouts, I couldn't help but smile. Although he was perverted and annoying, he was also unexpectedly wise and helpful. _I guess it wasn't such a bad decision to keep him after all._


	18. Chapter 18

BLEACH – Into a New World

Hi all. It's been a while I realize, and I DID post a note on my profile page, but I guess not that many people look at that. Thanks to the ones who did.

Well anyway, I've been going back re-reading some of the early chapters, and I realize I kinda screwed up the timeline, so I went back to chapter one and changed it a bit. Basically, I've changed Nagi from a third year student to a first year student (don't bother re-reading it, apart from that one word, everything else is the same). Then I realized that it didn't help, because my timeline was still screwed, so I kinda gave up.

So. Pretty much, what I'm trying to say, is that even if you find some inconsistencies with the timeline of my story to the real manga, sorry, but I can't really change it unless I go back and re-write the whole thing again. Bad planning I guess.

Anyway, please bear with the stupid screwed up timeline and enjoy this chapter!

DISCLAIMER: Bleach belongs to Tite Kubo

* * *

Chapter 18: Catfight

Aggravated, I paced in front of her house. Well, it would've been more accurate to call it a mansion. _Maybe this is a bad idea. It's not like Grimmjow can't find the way home by himself._

"Damn it." Stopping, I took a deep breath. _C'mon, man up a little, Nagi. _Carefully, slowly, I pushed the intercom button. _Dammit, I don't want to do this! _I wailed mentally. But before I could chicken out and run away, she answered.

"Who's this?"

_Damn. _"Uh…it's Nagi." Seconds later, the big iron gate began to open.

"Hurry up and come in."

"Uh…ok." _I should've run when I had the chance. _I mentally face palmed. Sighing, I dragged myself up her driveway. She was already waiting for me when I got to her door. "Uh." Self consciously, I scuffed my shoes against the concrete. "Where's Grimmjow?"

"Come in."

"Huh, what?" But she was already striding down the hallway. Hurriedly, I pulled my shoes off my feet and rushed after her. I could get lost if I wasn't careful. "Um…Where are you taking me?" I looked around.

Not replying, she stopped suddenly in front of a mahogany door. Crossing her arms, she nodded at the door. "He's in there. Go in."

Glancing back at her cautiously, I opened the door a crack and peered inside. There was nothing. Opening it wider, I saw the foot of a bed. _Wait. Is Grimmjow sleeping?_ Turning back to Kimiko, I whispered, "I think he's sleeping, I better not go in…" but she just rolled her eyes and shoved me into the room. Squeaking, I stumbled before falling onto all fours.

"Stop being such a wuss. I'll be down the hall." She snapped before slamming the door. I winced, and then flinched, as a groan came from the bed. Slowly standing up, I peered at the shaggy mop of blue hair peeking out of the bedcovers.

"Grimmjow?" I tiptoed over.

There was a pause before a pair of tired blue eyes squinted out at me from behind blue bangs. "Nagi? What're you doin' here?"

Clearing my throat, I straightened. "Hurry up. We're going home." I wanted to leave as soon as possible. Briskly, I strode over to the curtains and threw them open, eliciting a pained moan from Grimmjow.

"Ow, shit…my eyes…my head." Rolling over, he buried his face in his pillow. Roughly, I pulled away the blanket, only to throw them back haphazardly over his body.

"GRIMMJOW!" I shrieked, burying my face in my hands. "WHY ARE YOU NAKED?!" No matter how hard as I tried, the image could not be unseen. I wasn't angry exactly; I was just shocked and flustered.

"Shut up Nagi." He grunted as he sat up. "My head's killin' me. Is this what they call a hangover?"

"HANGOVER?" I yelped. "YOU'RE HUNGOVER? YOU HAD ALCOHOL?"

"Ow, stop shouting, Nagi." Wincing, he clutched his head.

"You-why-how-" Giving up on forming a comprehendible sentence, I just sighed and pinched the bridge of my nose despairingly. I needed to interrogate Kimiko. "Grimmjow. Get dressed, come find me and then we'll leave. I'll be down the hall."

* * *

Marching down the hallway, I found Kimiko lounging on a plush sofa in the unnecessarily large living room.

"Kimiko!" I planted myself in front of her. "You have some explaining to do."

"What?" Uninterested, she idly flipped through the pages of a magazine.

Snatching the magazine out of her hands, I glared at her. "One, why is Grimmjow having a hangover? Did you get him drunk last night? And two, why is he naked right now?"

Snatching back her magazine, she sneered up at me. "Hah. Why don't you ask him if you're so concerned?" Her sneer turned into a smirk. "As for why he's naked…" She trailed off.

Closing my eyes, I struggled to keep calm. "Kimiko, what did you do to him?"

She waved her hand around vaguely. "Oh, a bit of this and a bit of that." She smiled. "Nothing he didn't like."

I snapped. It was enough already. Grabbing her magazine, I threw it across the room. "Why do you have to do all this? Why do you have to go out of your way to mess with me?" I yelled.

She was on her feet on a flash. "Well it's not like I wanted to be here!" she retaliated.

"Of course!" I snapped. "You can't do anything by yourself! You're like an idiot! You do everything your mummy tell you to do, don't you?"

I knew I had hit a nerve when her face began to redden. Grabbing onto my collar, she hissed, "Don't you dare talk about things you don't understand!"

"Hah!" I spat, brutally pushing her away. "I understand perfectly! You're just a spoilt brat who hasn't worked a day in her life! You've never even felt anything like hardship!"

Her eyes flashed. "You're really asking to be pummeled, aren't you?"

"Pfft. I'd like to see you try."

Without warning, she lunged at me, throwing me onto the floor. Slightly stunned, I barely managed to avoid the fist that came crashing down. Scrambling onto my feet, I dropkicked her. Hearing her grunt I smiled grimly. _First blood goes to me. _But I had scarcely begun gloating when I felt her fist wham into my jaw. Reeling backwards from the pain, I saw her charge towards me, just in time to evade her elbow. Out of the corner of my eye, I noticed that Grimmjow had entered the room, together with a distinguished looking butler, or someone like that. Taking advantage of the distraction, Kimiko punched me in the face again.

"Ow, dammit." Unwilling to give her too much of an advantage, I kicked her in the groin and smashed my knee into her face as she doubled over. Through our labored panting, I faintly heard Grimmjow laugh and declare: "catfights – I love 'em", before heading towards the door. I turned around to yell at Grimmjow to 'get back here so that I can hit you.' only to feel my feet being swept out from under me before I even got my first word out. Landing on the ground with an "Oof!", I didn't have enough time to dodge the elbow that slammed into my stomach, but ignoring the pain, I managed to grab her collar and strenuously raising myself onto my feet, I threw her over my shoulder. Hissing with the pain, she scrambled onto her feet. Wheezing, we glared at each other before lunging in again.

* * *

Completely spent, I collapsed on the floor beside an equally exhausted Kimiko. Wincing, I touched my split lip gingerly. Glancing at Kimiko, I saw that she was inspecting her own wounds as well. Silently, we both lay there for a good few minutes before Kimiko sat up, her back facing me.

"Sorry." She mumbled.

"Huh?" I sat up as well.

"You heard me!" she snapped. "I said I was sorry!" As much as we disliked each other, we weren't so boorish as to not know when we were wrong.

"Yeah. Me too." I replied, crossing my legs. "Sorry."

There was a long silence before she spoke again.

"You might be right."

"Hm?"

"About me being too dependent on mum."

Stunned, I gaped at her back. I never expected her to say something like that. It was shocking to say in the least.

"But it's not like it was completely my fault," she went on, looking at me pointedly "it was because SOMEBODY just had to run off and leave me at the complete mercy of my mum. It must've been nice to not have to face her again."

Guiltily, I looked away. "Sorry." I mumbled.

"Do you know how hard she was on me after you left? It was all lessons, business etcetera, etcetera. I thought about running away so many times." I saw her shoulders sag as she sighed. Turning her head slightly, she glared at me. "You know, if you didn't run off before the reading of dad's will, none of this would've happened."

I put up my hands helplessly. "Hey, how was I supposed to know he was going to give me a third of the shares of the company? And I never thought she was THAT determined to get it back."

Kimiko shuffled around until she was facing me. "Why didn't you just come back though? I know how much you wanted to become a singer and how mum was getting in your way. If you came back, then she would've stopped holding you back."

"Really?" I raised a skeptical eyebrow. "And let her take the shares away before throwing me out again with nothing?" I shook my head. "No way. I needed that money to repay debts and school fees and all sorts of stuff."

"What about singing?" she stared at me curiously. "I know you wanted to become a singer."

"Singing…" I murmured, almost to myself. "You know what? I think I'll give up on that."

"What?" Now it was her turn to be shocked. "Why?"

"Well," sighing, I lay back down. "I guess it's because when you become a singer, you have to give up a lot of things, and there are a couple of things I don't want to have to give up on." Fleetingly I thought of Grimmjow.

"You have a point, I guess." She rubbed her bruised arm.

"To be honest, in the beginning, I wasn't as determined to be a singer as I was later. It was just something I thought might be nice."

"Really?" she glanced at me, curious.

"Yeah. But you know, the more she tried to stop me, the more I wanted to do it. You know that feeling?"

"Of course. I did that a lot too." She smirked. "With men though. I went out with all the types of guys she didn't want me to go out with."

"How scandalous!" I laughed.

"For sure." She giggled.

Suddenly becoming serious, I sat up. "Hey Kimiko."

"Yeah?"

"When we were younger," I hesitated "why…why did you always ignore me? Did you hate me? When I heard I had an older half sister, I was really happy." I plucked at the carpet. "I thought we could play together and stuff…but you kept avoiding me."

"My mum told me to stay away from you." She replied simply. "She told me you were a bad girl, and that your mum was a bad person. She said your eyes were bad luck."

I cringed slightly. "Then…then what do you think?"

She shrugged. "I used to believe her, but then, as I grew up, I realized how stupid that was. I mean, I know someone with slightly strange colored eyes and apart from that, he isn't really any different from anyone else."

Silently, I breathed out in relief. Then another thought struck me.

"Uh…Kimiko?"

"Yeah?"

"When you said that you did 'a bit of this, a bit of that'…did you really…?"

"Oh, get your mind out of the gutter!" she snapped. "Of course I didn't! We just played Monopoly and some card games, that's all."

"Oh." I blinked. "Oh. Then why was he naked?"

"That, I don't know." She shrugged. "Maybe he spilled something on his clothes?"

"Oh, right. That would make sense."

We both sat there awkwardly. But it was a good kind of awkward, I realized. It felt like we were children again, and we were meeting each other for the first time.

Groaning, Kimiko stood up stiffly. "Miyagi!"

"Yes miss?" A maid entered.

"I think we need the first aid kit please. Bring it to the kitchen."

* * *

"I'd never have guessed Grimmjow was your type." Kimiko commented as she sipped her coffee.

My immediate reaction was to deny everything as I had done before, but I hesitated. "He wasn't." I finally said.

She raised an eyebrow. "Then what happened?"

I shrugged. "I don't know." I replied honestly.

"You're pretty clueless aren't you?"

"Shut up."

Laughing, she poured herself another cup of coffee. "This is so weird." She mused. "When I first met Grimmjow, I wondered what kind of girls he went for, but who would've thought you were his type of girl."

"Eh?" I froze, my cup of hot chocolate raised halfway to my lips.

"Don't tell me you haven't noticed." Seeing my flabbergasted face, she sighed. "Whenever I took him out, it was always 'Nagi this, Nagi that.' Like: 'Was Nagi always this stingy about money?' 'Why is she always so serious?' 'Nagi never buys stuff like this for me.' 'Did you know Nagi's scared of spiders?' and other stuff like that."

"No, no, he was just being nosy, I'm sure." I spluttered, reddening.

"Really now." Kimiko drawled.

"Uh, yes. Yes, I'm sure. Um. I should, uh, go. Home, I mean." I stuttered. She was making me uncomfortable.

"Aren't you forgetting something?"

"What? What am I forgetting?" my mind was a mess. _Is it my jacket? _No it wasn't my jacket.

"What did you come here for?"

"Grimmjow!" I realized. "Where's Grimmjow?"

"He's probably waiting at the entrance by now. Or on his way there at least. Miyagi will take you there." she nodded at the maid.

"Oh, ok. Thank you." I smiled at the maid who smiled back.

"Nagi!" Kimiko called just as I turned to leave.

"What?" I turned back.

"I'm going."

"Going? Going where?"

"I'm going home, to Kyoto."

I took a step back, surprised. "But weren't you meant to try and make me go back with you?"

"But you won't, will you?"

"Well, no. But she'll be really mad, won't she?"

"Yeah, but I've decided. I'm going to give her a choice."

"A choice?"

"Yep. Either she lets me do what I want, or I leave and take my third of the shares with me."

"Wow." I was impressed. "Then what is it you want to do?"

"I want to become an architect."

My mouth hung open. "Seriously?" I managed to squeak.

"Yeah. Is it that surprising?" she asked, looking slightly self-conscious.

"Hmm, maybe just a tiny bit." I said, demonstrating the amount with the tips of my fingers.

"Well," she smiled "maybe I'll call you and let you know how it went."

I smiled back. "Please do."

* * *

Yep. Nagi and Kimiko fight like men. REAL men.


	19. Chapter 19

BLEACH – Into a New World

Yay, this was a quick upload! I felt bad for not uploading all those weeks, so I worked really hard to write this chapter A.S.A.P.

Anyway, thanks for all you comments and ideas! I feel kind of bad, because I won't be able to use most of them (too different from the kind of story I'm writing or just unable to be done.) but I just wanted to thank everyone for taking the time to comment!

Enjoy!

DISCLAIMER: Bleach and Grimmjow belong to Tite Kubo.

P.S. I finally put up the drawing of Nagi and Grimmjow onto my DeviantArt account, feel free to check it out if you want to, but in all seriousness, it's not that great. My account is Mad-Hatter-0495.

* * *

Chapter 19 – Never Find Out

"All right!" Keiko fist pumped. "Next step: tell him how you feel!"

"What?" I squeaked, paling. "No! How could I do that?"

Sprawled out under the shade of a large oak tree, both Keiko and Ayame wrinkled their noses at me.

"How could you NOT do that?" Ayame wheedled. "Don't you want to be acknowledged as a couple? Don't you want to do all the things couples do? Like hug and kiss?"

I flushed at the mention of kissing. Apart from the one Eli stole, which I didn't acknowledge as a kiss, I had never been kissed before. Heck, I'd never even had a boyfriend before! I glanced up to see Ayame watching me intently.

"No. Well, yes. Um, maybe." Confused and frustrated, I pulled fistfuls of grass out of the earth until there was just a bare patch of dirt in front of me. "I don't know." I finally admitted. "How do you expect a girl who's never had a boyfriend, never confessed, never been confessed to, to just suddenly confess? It's crazy!" I listlessly tossed some of the uprooted grass at the tree.

"It's easy." Keiko sat up and shuffled closer. "Just say:' Grimmjow, I like you. Will you be my boyfriend?'"

"No!" I threw the rest of the grass at her. "What if I get rejected?"

"Well that's your problem." She shrugged. "Ow!" Keiko grimaced as Ayame punched her arm.

"You're not helping." Ayame scolded, pushing Keiko over. Turning to me, she sighed. "Nagi, quit worrying. He won't reject you."

"How do you know?" I started plucking at the grass again.

"I just know." She grabbed my hand to stop me from ripping up any more grass.

"No you don't."

"Yes, I do."

"You don't."

"I do."

"Sure, whatever." I stuck out my chin mulishly. "But I'm still not telling him."

Groaning, she sat back. "And why not?"

"Because I'm fine with how things are now."

"You sure?"

"Yep." I nodded. "If I tell him and he rejects me, everything will be in shambles. And my dignity and self confidence will wither up and die."

Exasperated, Ayame rolled her eyes. "Yeah, but he WON'T reject you."

"You don't know that." I rebutted.

Sighing, she buried her face in her hands as Keiko shook her head, bemused.

"That's it." Ayame stood resolutely. "If you won't tell him, then I will!"

"NO!" yelping, I lunged at Ayame to stop her, but only managed fall flat onto my face. Scrambling back onto my knees, I spat out some grass before looking up at her pleadingly. "You can't!"

Sighing, she sat back down. "Fine. I was only half joking anyway." she muttered.

"Half joking." Keiko echoed.

"That means you were half serious." I pressed.

"Yep."

I made a face. "Ayame, promise me you won't do anything unnecessary."

She wrinkled her nose. "Personally, I think it's VERY necessary."

"Ayame!"

"Fine, fine." She relented. "I promise."

* * *

"Hi Mr. Urahara." I nodded as I entered his shop. "Grimmjow?"

"Sparring with Kurosaki in the basement." He cradled a hot cup of tea in his hands, blowing on its surface before taking a sip.

"Alright." Shrugging off my coat and scarf, I left them in the corner together with my bag before heading down. Ever since I was, well, _forced_ to acknowledge my feelings for the blue haired man, all I could think of was how to stop him from finding out. It was embarrassing. I was never the affectionate type, and now suddenly, to have such feelings…it felt out of place. It just didn't feel _me._ I sighed glumly. _Falling in love really doesn't suit me. _

"Nagi!" I looked up to see Yoruichi waving at me from atop a large rock.

"Hi Yoruichi!" I waved back. I watched as she hopped down lithely and joined me at the entrance of the basement.

"You're just in time." She winked. "I was just going to get then to take it up a notch."

"Really?" I looked skeptically at the two fighting figures. "It looks like they're already going at it pretty hard."

"Just wait." She laughed. "But first, lets get a better view."

Glancing around, I found a rocky ledge near the edge of the field. "How about there?" I pointed it out to Yoruichi.

"Nice choice." She nodded with approval. In no time at all, with the help of her Shunpo, we were up on the ledge, with a good view of the entire place. "Grimmjow! Ichigo! Time for the next level!" she called, cupping her hands around her mouth. "Go all out!"

I watched, slightly apprehensive as Grimmjow lay the palm of his hand on his glowing sword, grinning.

"GRIND! PANTERA!" he roared raking his nails across the steel. Crouching low on the ledge, I squeezed my eyes shut and turned my face away from the sudden gust of wind and dust that erupted from Grimmjow's blade. When I opened my eyes again, I gasped. Grimmjow had transformed into some kind of human-animal hybrid. Although slightly strange, he was beautiful. Seeing him like this reminded me once again of how important it was for him to stay ignorant about my feelings. I was sure he'd laugh at me if he ever found out.

* * *

"Yo, Nagi." Grimmjow tiredly raised an arm in greeting.

"Hey." I replied with a small smile. Keeping some distance between us, I sat down cross-legged next to next to him. _Now what? _I wondered. I knew that the key to keeping him unaware was to act normal, but how exactly would I do that? _What would I usually do in this situation? _My mind was blank.

"Why so quiet?"

Jolting, I came back to the present, my eyes landing on Grimmjow who was watching me with a puzzled expression.

"Oh. Uh, nothing. No reason." I looked away, hiding my faint blush behind a curtain of hair. _Damn. _Eye contact was definitely impossible. How was I supposed to act normal if I felt like a wriggling worm pinned on a wall every time he looked at me?

"Alright." Shrugging, he relaxed against the wall. "Your problem, not mine."

"I guess." I muttered quietly. Although I wanted to be near him, he would find out for sure if I kept acting this way. _I guess if I can't act normal, I should avoid him as much as I can. _"Alright!" resolutely, I stood up.

"'Alright' what?" Grimmjow frowned at me.

"Oh, um…" _crap. I forgot he was next to me. _"Alright...I'm going up now…?"

Slightly mystified, he shrugged again. "Sure. You go ahead, I'll be up soon."

"Um, actually," I twiddled my fingers "I've got quite a bit of homework to do today so, uh, I'll head back home first. Ok?"

There was a slight pause before he answered. "Sure."

_Damn. _I could tell that he knew I was hiding something. _Hopefully I'll get better at acting normal soon._

"Ok, I'll see you soon then!" Hurriedly walking away, I could still feel his perplexed gaze on my back.

* * *

It hadn't even been three whole days before Grimmjow confronted me.

"Nagi."

I looked up from my studies to see Grimmjow leaning on my doorframe with a grim expression.

"Oh. Grimmjow." I busied myself with reorganizing the paper on my desk to avoid looking at him. "Do you need something?"

He got straight to the point. "You've been avoidin' me."

_Damn. _"What? No! No, I haven't. Why would you think that?" I fiddled with my eraser.

"Don't gimme that 'I don't know what you're talkin' about' shit. You don't tell me off for drinkin' out of the milk carton, you don't complain about how much milk you have to buy, hell, you barely talk to me." his blue eyes narrowed. "What the hell are you tryin' to hide from me?"

_Damn it. Damn it damn it damn it. _"Nothing."

"I ain't stupid."

_Yes you are you big idiot. _"I said it's nothing. And I'm not avoiding you." I raised my voice slightly. I just wanted him to go away, before he noticed anything else.

"And I said I ain't stupid." He raised his voice too.

It was infuriating, and I was getting desperate. _What should I do? What should I say? _Just when I opened my mouth to yell at him to go away, my phone rang. Gratefully, I leapt at it. Picking it up, I motioned for Grimmjow to go away.

With a final withering glare, he slunk away muttering under his breath.

* * *

"Grimmjow…can I talk to you?" I nervously stood in the doorway to his room.

"Yeah?" not stopping his sit-ups, he motioned for me to enter.

"Um…" meekly, I sidled into his room.

"What?" Grimmjow raised his eyebrows. "Shoot."

"I like you." I finally blurted out, blushing.

He paused in the middle of a sit-up, staring at me. "What?"

"I…like you." I repeated, staring at the ground, red-faced. There was a silence before I heard a choking sound coming from Grimmjow. Glancing up, I realized that he was trying to cover up his laughter.

"You?" he spluttered. "You like me? Are you serious?" howling with laughter, he rolled around on the floor. I felt my heart cracking as a tear rolled down my cheek. This wasn't supposed to happen. He wasn't supposed to laugh at me. _Actually, come to think of it, I wasn't supposed to tell him in the first place. _Waking up with a gasp, I sat up, panting.

"A dream…" I murmured with relief. _Thank god. _Flopping back down, I covered myself with my blankets again. Even if it was a dream, it was still rather depressing. If I already felt that sad in a dream, how much worse would it be in real life? "I will never ever EVER tell him. EVER."

* * *

"Hey Nagi." Kurosaki stopped me in the corridor.

"Oh, hi Kurosaki." I replied, faintly surprised. We didn't really talk much at school, being in different classes and all, so it was quite rare for him to pull me aside like this. Shuffling to the wall to let other students pass, I waited for him to speak again.

"So…" he began awkwardly.

I raised my eyebrows. "So?"

Clearing his throat, he tried again. "So, uh, did something happen with Grimmjow recently?"

I covered up my surprise by laughing, albeit slightly nervously. "No, not really. Uh, why do you ask?"

"Oh, nothing much." He rubbed the back of his neck wearily. "Just, he's been more aggressive during our sparring sessions, and more temperamental in general, so I was wondering if you knew anything."

"Uh, no, sorry." I fiddled with a loose thread on my jumper.

"That's too bad." He grimaced. "I almost got killed a couple of times, so, well, I guess what I'm trying to say is that if there's anything you could do, please give it a go, because I don't want to die yet."

"Uh…" I felt bad about Kurosaki, but I just couldn't. Especially after that horrible dream I had. Besides, I was sure he could hold his own against Grimmjow. "Sorry, I can't. Okay, bye!" I gave him a small wave before dashing off. Grimmjow's temper was a bit worrying, but surely it was only temporary?


End file.
